


A Cup of Coffee, Please

by DerpinDot, SoVeryTired



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, F/M, Kinda Humor, Kinda fluff, Mortal AU, NOT Lukabeth, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Romance, Sharing a bed?, Sorry Not Sorry, anyways if you read the tags i'm speed uploading so it'll catch up with ffnet, coffee shop AU, how about sharing an elevator, if there are plot holes no there aren't, tags are subject to change, you see nothing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:26:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 39,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26484133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DerpinDot/pseuds/DerpinDot, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoVeryTired/pseuds/SoVeryTired
Summary: Percy can't hold a job worth his life, but his newest one is going pretty well. The catch? He's got a big crush on his boss, and dating is against company policy.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Jason Grace/Piper McLean (background), Past Luke Castellan/Annabeth Chase, Silena Beauregard/Charles Beckendorf
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Um, originally posted on fanfiction.net, blah, blah, blah. Credits to my co-author, please excuse any plot holes, grammar errors, etc. etc. Writing improves. It gets better. Enjoy!

It was Percy's first day on the job.

"Hello there, miss, what would you like to order?" The young woman looked up from her sketchpad. She looked like any other stereotypical Californian girl - blonde hair, tan skin, athletic figure, except for 1 thing - her eyes. They were gray, but not just any gray. It was a stormy gray, a calculating gray that somehow gave her an ethereal quality. No, this was not just any 'dumb blonde'.

She smiled at him and he felt a sudden warmth. "I'd like a cup of coffee and some waffles, please."

"A cup of coffee and some waffles, coming right up!" he whisked away her menu and returned to the kitchen. When he came back, she was holding a black colored pencil and seemed to be shading something in. Not that it was his business or anything.

"Here's your order, ma'am." he said politely, waiting for her smile again. She did not disappoint.

"Thank you."

He nodded and walked to a different customer.

OoOoOoOoO

He looked up when he heard the tinkle of bells. She was leaving. On her way out the door, she paused and caught his eye. She smiled, one more time. And then she was gone.

He was only starting to clean up her table when a piece of carefully folded paper under her plate of waffles grabbed his attention. He unfolded it, being careful to not damage the damp paper.

It was a drawing of himself. Right down to the black hair and green eyes. She must have drawn it when he was getting her food. He folded it up again and was about to tuck it in his shirt pocket when he noticed that she had signed the bottom right corner. A cursive _Annabeth Chase_ , with a flourish. He smiled slightly and put it away, continuing on to the next customer.

OoOoOoOoO

"How was your first day, sweetie?" His mom was cooking her famous 7-layer dip lasagna in the kitchen. He smiled faintly.

"I'm not fired yet, so that's good." she kissed his forehead.

"I'm so proud of you, honey. Not getting fired as soon as you're hired!" she tousled his hair. "Now we can have a celebratory meal! I'm so glad you can help with the bills now. My baby is all grown up!"

He laughed. "Mo-om! I'm not a kid anymore!"

She smiled fondly at him. "You'll always be my baby."

OoOoOoOoO

She was there the next day, too. And the day after that. And the day after...

He never got the chance to be her waiter again. But he wanted to meet her again, get to know her, get her to smile at him over an ice cream food fight. Er, not that he had ever had one, of course. Totally.

He became obsessed. Looked her up on the internet, followed her Facebook, stalked her Instagram, monitored her Twitter, you name it. No one knew, except for his mom. Because moms always knew.

He didn't know what caused him to do it. Heck, he doubted she even knew his name. But he knew hers. And that was all that mattered.

OoOoOoOoO

"Look, Percy, you're a great waiter and all, but you're too easily distracted."

"But sir-"

"I'm sorry, Percy."

He had lasted a week. Okay, granted, that was the longest he had ever lasted, but still. He had _liked_ his job. He had gotten to see her. Every. Single. Day. As a matter of fact, she was probably the reason he got fired. He was always sneaking glances at her when he should have been working. Not that was was stalker-ish in any way. Not at all.

Not at all.

OoOoOoOoO

He got hired at a pizza place. He did like pizza. A lot. But still...

His first delivery was at Crescent Way 1573. **A/N: if that's a real street, and you, as the reader are living on it, please excuse me if that is not an actual house number. If it is your house number, don't tell me that.**

He knocked lightly on the door.

"Hello?"

Annabeth Chase.

OoOoOoOoO

He mentally smacked himself on the forehead. What was he thinking? He really should have checked the name on the customer (er, client? Order-er?). Not that he didn't want to see her, but it had been so long and he'd never been good with talking to girls in general... especially pretty ones. And she was nothing if not pretty. Oh, and artistic. And probably...

Focus. _Cool_.

She cleared her throat, jerking him out of his thoughts. He could have sworn he saw the faintest spark of recognition in her eyes before they were swallowed up by the gray. He didn't believe in fortune-telling and hippie stuff, but it felt like she was staring into the depths of his soul.

Gray.

"Uh, hello, miss, are you, um, Annabeth Chase?"

Something along the lines of amusement danced in her eyes. Or maybe it was just his imagination. "Why, yes, I am. And may I ask what you are doing at my doorstep at this time?"

He felt a flush creeping up his neck. "This, uh, is the pizza you ordered from [insert name of pizza place, whatever suits you]." There was a heavy tension in the air. Or maybe he was just going crazy. He was trying really, really, really hard not to notice the fact she was wearing shorts - which, by the way, showed off her legs - or that she was wearing a tank top.

_Who knew shoulders could seem so attractive?_

Yep, definitely going crazy.

She reached out for the box, before pausing. "Actually, why don't you come on in? It looks cold." That was unexpected. He dimly remembered his mom saying something about not talking to strangers, let alone going into their homes!

But she wasn't a stranger. Not really.

"No, I have to get back home, 'cause, you know, curfew and all and my mom she would just uhh-" she placed her hand lightly on his arm.

"I insist. Besides, I have something I want to speak to you about. It's not about the pizza."

So he nodded, took a deep breath, and crossed the threshold.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for all plot holes! I have acknowledged them, but this story is currently too far along to fix those.
> 
> Thank you all for reading!
> 
> Oh! And credits to my co-author, as always. I would not be here without him.

As he stepped into the modest house (well, modest isn't really a good word for it. It wasn't like, huge or anything, but what it looked like made up for it). There were papers all over the floor - like, literally. Not just the clumps here and there that his mom always complained about. It was... wow. Like, wow as in, I-had-no-idea-anyone-could-be-that-messy kind of wow.

She grabbed his arm and led him into the living room. He felt electrified - like every nerve was on fire. When she let go, he stood there, rubbing the spot where they had made contact.

"Sit." she patted the sofa. "We need to talk."

"R-right."

"I need your help." she clasped her hands together. Hastily, when she saw the way something shone in his eyes, she added, "Not your help strictly. I just... well... relationship advice."

He tried not to think too much about it.

"I-I just, well, you know, you look like you've had a lot of experience, and... I-I got in a fight with my boyfriend recently and... and... you're also a boy, too, you know... oh, what was I thinking? I'm sorry for taking up your time. I was just desperate for a bit of company. It's been so lonely. He won't talk to me, and I-"

"No, no, it's fine. I need to get going now." he abruptly stood up. "Th-thank you for eating [insert name of pizza place]'s pizza! Come - I mean, call again!"

As soon as he was out, he wiped away a tear.

When he got home, he threw himself into the pillows. After an hour of moping, in which his mom had come in at least 20 times, he called up the pizza place and quit. He didn't want to work at food places anymore.

After that, he got himself hired as a janitor at an architecture company.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy now worked at a place called Chase Enterprises. He didn't dwell too much on that. No, he thought way more about how one person could spill twelve cups of coffee in three hours? And on top of that, his/her office was at the top of the building. Great. Just great. And for some weird reason, that person was never up there when he arrived to clean up. He would hear their voice on the walkie-talkie, telling him to come up and clean up. But for some reason, he never saw them.

Yes, that was 100% cuckoo. There was only 1 elevator. One set of stairs. He dimly wondered if that person was  _ trying  _ to avoid him. But why? It wasn't like he knew them, anyways.

Or so he thought.

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth woke up on her sofa.

Oh,  _ shoot _ .

She had 10 minutes to get to get ready if she wanted to get to work on time. Not that she needed to worry about getting fired, 'cause she was the boos, but she had a lot of clients. She downed a cup of coffee, her hand slightly shaking. She threw on the only pair of clean clothes she had, brushed her hair and teeth in a record of 1 minute. She grabbed a muffin on her way out and ate it in the car.

There, she checked in at the front desk.

_ Why, oh why, did I think it was a good idea to put my office at the top of the building? _ She thought despairingly as the elevator made its slow ascent.  _ I could have put it on the bottom floor with easy access, but noooooooo... I put it up here. _

When she arrived, hands shaking, she made a cup of coffee, which she spilled when she lifted it to take a drink. "Hot!" she yelped. She immediately buzzed the walkie-talkie, demanding someone come up and clean up.

Then, she froze, remembering she fired the old janitor recently.

And the new janitor…

She hurried to the staircase, opened it, and closed it. She leaned against the door, her heart racing. Those eyes... they had flashed with hurt, disbelief, sadness, and a bunch of other emotions she couldn't place.

She hated it so much. It filled her with something, like nothing she had ever felt before. She refused to believe it was anything but anger, but fury, but...

She refused to believe she felt something for the boy at the coffee shop with bright, yet sorrowful eyes. Those pools of green...

Annabeth shook her head.

_ No. I have a boyfriend. _

She didn't even know why she had told him - Percy - about that. Maybe... maybe...

No. She just wanted him to know, for her to get over what fluttered inside and made her light-headed. And that was it. Really. And though she would never admit it, she felt like there was another reason for this. For this irrationality. And she hated it even more than his eyes.

So she ran and hid every time she spilled her coffee - which was 12 times, and counting - behind the door. She had a perfect view of her office from there. She knew it was him. His raven locks...

OoOoOoOoO

He was about to step back into the elevator when the walkie-talkie crackled again.

"Hey." for some reason, their voice seemed shaky, but it was covered well. "I just-I just spilled some more coffee. Sorry. Come-come up and clean it.

Percy sighed and warily made his way back to the office he knew so well.

He opened the door, and came face-to-face with a blonde he knew well - far too well. Her startling grey eyes locked in on his green ones, and her lips parted in a slight 'o'. Percy's heart dropped down to his boots.

"Annabeth?"

OoOoOoOoO

She gave a curt nod. "Percy."

And then she rushed out as fast as her feet could take her without making it too obvious that she was running away. She rushed out with her head held high, like she had somewhere important to go, something important to do, because she's not running away.

But she was.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy stared at her retreating back, stares at her blonde curls bouncing, tantalizing, taunting...

He wanted to touch them.

But he held back, just watched, just stood there and watched her walk away...

_ Because she has a boyfriend. _

Oh, right. Because she has a boyfriend.

He pushes the thought away from his mind. He works here now. He can think about this stuff at home. But she works here too...

He shakes his head.  _ No _ . He sets to work cleaning again. Just like he's supposed to. Just like he was paid to. Just like he was hired to. Just like... just like...  _ she  _ hired him. She must have.

But why?

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth found the nearest restroom, rushed into a stall and sat there. Just sat there, with her head in her hands, her heart thumping erratically in her chest. She stood up, though her legs felt weak, and she just leaned against the wall.

Good thing he couldn’t come in and clean the girls' restroom.

Why'd she even hire him? She knew who he was.

She’d met him.

He... didn’t know who she was.

But he knew something about her.

That she had relationship problems.

_ With her boyfriend. _

_ "I can't believe you!" _

_ "It's not what it looks like, Annie, I swear!" _

_ "Don't call me Annie." _

_ She stormed off, leaving her boyfriend... _

She shook herself out of the memory.

She still held on to him, though, with no clue why.

_ "He doesn't deserve you, Annie, break up with him!" _

But she couldn't.

Wouldn’t.

Why?

But this is her workplace. And rule number one? Leave your personal life out of it. She returned to her office and, leaving the coffee machine untouched, began sorting out the papers. A contract, ooh, someone is paying a rather hefty price for a house. Wonderful.

She set to work.

OoOoOoOoO

Throughout the day, Percy rushed up and down the building.

_ Up, down, up, down, up, down... _

But all day, he never got a call to clean the top floor.

_ Her floor. _


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Hopefully you’re enjoying things so far. Just so you know, after this chapter the average word count per chapter basically doubles. As a result, things pick up a fair bit. Also, in case you were worried about update schedule, we plan to upload once every six days at around 3pm EST. And, since this is coming from FFnet first, we have 7 more chapters already out over there, with an 8th ready in advance. So no need to worry about a lack of updates lol ^_^ anywho, enjoy!

OoOoOoO

She worked late. Late, late, late, late... anything to get her mind off that afternoon.

And her boyfriend.

And everything.

Work swallowed all her thoughts, drowned them out. It made life so much easier. Then, someone popped their head in. "I'm leaving now. Will you be ok, boss? It's pretty late... you should probably go home."

She forced a tired smile. "No, I'm fine. I'll just... do a bit... more..."

He obviously didn't believe her, but gave her a nod. "Alright then... well, I'll be on my way! I have to meet a special someone tonight!"

_ A special someone _ ... When was the last time she had met her special someone? Talked to him? Gods, they couldn't even talk anymore. Why... was one silly little argument worth all that? If only she could just swallow her pride...

_ Let me close my eyes for one minute... and then I'll get right back to work... _

OoOoOoOoO

Percy sat in front of the telephone - why did they even have a telephone? Why not a smartphone? - waiting for a call to tell him he was fired. But after a couple of hours, he got no call. He then, rightfully, assumed he was  _ not  _ fired.

"Percy! Dinner's ready!" his mom called from downstairs.

"Coming, Mom!"

"So... how's the first day on the job?" in celebration of him getting a new job (which happened more than you would think), his mom had baked his favorite seven-layer dip.

"Fine."

"Just fine?"

"Just fine."

She didn't question him. She never did. Well, at least not too much.

He stood up. "That was good, mom. But I better get going. I have to start work early tomorrow."

OoOoOoOoO

He woke up, got dressed, showered, and ran out of the house, grabbing a donut on his way.

And a cookie.

One could never forget the cookies.

He unlocked the building and went in. He noticed, at the top floor, a light was on.

Hmm. Weird.

_ Should I go check it out? _

Of course.

He made his way up - with the staircase this time; elevators made too much noise. He opened the door, careful not to make too much noise himself. There, on the desk, was a mass of blonde curls. And he knew  _ exactly  _ who they belonged to.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy gaped at something he thought he would never see: his boss... sleeping... at work...?

Preposterous!

Impossible!

Couldn't be true!

But it was.

Her blonde hair in messy ringlets, her papers scattered on the floor, coffee dripping off the table...

Percy never thought he had seen something so beautiful.

Then, he remembered what he was there for. To clean. And nothing else.

Oh, and to get paid.

_ Sigh _ ...

Percy pulled the mop off of the cart, dipped it in water, and started cleaning the coffee. He swept up the trash, put the papers in an orderly pile on the desk, and continued to the other floors.

He'd come back.

Perhaps.

OoOoOoOoO

Sea green eyes.

An ocean.

Waves.

Sebastian the crab.

She couldn't swim!

She floundered helplessly in the waves.

And then she was drowning, until a flock of paper cranes came down and tried to save her.

But they were all pulled into the water... one... by... one...

She was floating.

In a hot air balloon.

Green.

And gray.

And then there was blue. It was cold.

So cold.

And then, a raven's wing.

Darkness.

OoOoOoOoO

_ Ding! _

The elevator stopped. He’d come back.

She was still sleeping. He stared at her hair.

It seemed to be beckoning to him.

He reached a hand out, but she jolted upwards, gasping like she'd been drowning.

Or something.

"What are you doing?"

The storm in her eyes got darker. He could swear he saw lightning.

"Uh..." he pointed to her coffee cup, on the left. "I was... picking that... up."

"Oh." the tension in her shoulders visibly deflated. "I... how long was I out?"

"I... don't know. You were sleeping when I got here."

She cast him a look, clearly suspicious.

Of what?

Her phone rang. She looked at it and cursed. 

"What is it?"

"Nothing. I... a date. Yesterday. I have to go."

Annabeth pushed past... him, nearly knocking him over in her haste to get out.

Ah, shoot. This wasn't good. This was, in fact, really, really bad. She had missed her I'm-sorry-can-we-try-again date and she was caught sleeping on the job.

It was a really good thing she was the boss.

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, which was surprisingly still smooth.

OoOoOoOoO

Running, she sent off a text to her ex-boyfriend:

_ 7:18 AM _

_ I'm so sorry. I fell asleep while working. Can we reschedule? _

OoOoOoOoO

She anxiously checked her phone.

_ 9:04 AM _

_ I'm so sorry. I fell asleep while working. Can we reschedule? _

_ Marked unread. _

OoOoOoOoO

_ 12:47 PM  _ **(A/N: Noon. Noon, people. 12 AM is midnight. Just... in case you don't know.)**

_ I'm so sorry. I fell asleep while working. Can we reschedule? _

_ Marked unread. _

OoOoOoOoO

"What the heck?" Annabeth muttered, staring at her phone screen. "Why won't he answer?"

OoOoOoOoO

_ 3:17 PM _

_ I'm so sorry. I fell asleep while working. Can we reschedule? _

_ Marked read. _

OoOoOoOoO

_ 3:18 PM _

_ Please answer. _

_ Marked read. _

OoOoOoOoO

_ 3:19 PM _

_ I'm really, really sorry. _

_ Marked read. _

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth was lying on her bed, surrounded by pillows and blankets, staring intensely at her phone.

_ 6:33 PM _

_ Luke? _

_ Marked read. _

She groaned.

"I don't even know why I bother." She said out loud to herself. "It's not like  _ he  _ does."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there it is! If you liked it, feel free to check out our other stories! Leave a kudos if you enjoyed and please comment with any feedback you have! Best wishes, peace!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there!
> 
> Another update for ya here! So, from here on out the length of the chapters definitely increases, as does the quality. Things also pick up from here. Hopefully you enjoy things going forward!

Percy didn’t want to go to work the next day. He really didn’t. Unfortunately, he had to. So he did.

He avoided the top floor as best as he could - heck, he even avoided the elevator… just in case. 

He knew the other janitor could take care of the top floor. Whoever the other janitor _was._ For some reason, they never seemed to show up. Percy wondered why they hadn’t been fired yet. _He_ would have been.

Or maybe the other person had been here the whole time and they just never crossed paths. Which was very unlikely. Probably. Percy wasn’t exactly sure how large the whole building was, but the other person couldn’t accidentally avoid him _that_ much, right?

He brushed away the thought. 

He was here to work, not speculate on whether or not he knew the other janitor. Whoever it was, it didn’t matter. At least not at the moment. He sighed and settled in for a long day. 

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth’s coffee machine was broken. She was _not_ happy. She’d become very dependent on the stuff. 

Oh, the downsides of drinking too much coffee. Besides shakiness and sleepless nights. Obviously. She pushed a stray lock of hair out of her face, fingers trembling.

Excessive consumption of caffeine. She needed to stop. But when she slept, there were… dreams. About _him._ About them.

She needed to clear her head. Annabeth rubbed her eyes, then pressed a button that called for maintenance.

The moment the line connected she barked into the phone, “I- my coffee machine is broken. I need you to fix it.” She winced inwardly. She hadn’t meant to be that aggressive. This caffeine headache was killing her. 

A deep, gruff voice came through the line. “I’ll be right up,” it said. Then the line abruptly cut off. 

Several minutes later, a large African American man walked in. He looked sort of clumsy and didn’t seem to be carrying any tools, Annabeth noticed. 

“Are you- you’re maintenance?” she asked, eyeing him suspiciously. She was pretty sure her maintenance worker had been a small Latino guy. 

He grunted in reply. “Yup, that’s me.”

She watched him nervously as he quickly began to disassemble her coffee machine (where he pulled those tools from, she had no idea). She noticed that for such a big man, he was surprisingly delicate. 

Annabeth decided to make some small talk, to fill the awkward silence that had fallen over them.

“What’s your name?” she asked. “I haven’t seen you before. What happened to…” she drifted off as she realized she hadn’t actually bothered to learn the name of the last maintenance guy. Annabeth was starting to wonder if she was a bad boss.

“Beckendorf,” he grunted, still tinkering with the coffee maker.

“Beckendorf...?” she said his name like a question, frowning. “That’s a strange name. Not that it’s a bad one!” she added quickly, wincing internally at her awkwardness. Annabeth really needed her coffee in the mornings, especially _this_ morning.

The large man paused for a moment, before running his hand through his hair, seemingly embarrassed. “I mean, my first name is Charles, but nobody calls me that. It’s just Beckendorf. But you are my boss, so if you want to call me Charlie, I get it...” he said, frowning, clearly uncomfortable.

Even without her coffee, Annabeth could tell he’d prefer her to call him by his last name. Maybe it was because she felt a sudden wave of guilt wash over her for not even bothering to learn her last employee’s name (she made a mental note to check if he still worked for her), but she decided to go with it.

“Beckendorf is fine with me,” she said. It was subtle, but she noticed his shoulders relax in relief. He gave her a small nod and then returned to working on her malfunctioning coffee maker.

In less than ten minutes, he was finished.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling weakly at him. “You can, um, go now.” Without another word, he turned and left. With a sigh of relief, Annabeth sat down again and made another cup of coffee. 

As she waited for her coffee to brew, Annabeth’s mind drifted to the lack of response from Luke. She was stressed out about it; she still had gotten nothing from him. She resisted the urge to check her phone again. She had made sure her ringer was on several times. She’d know when he responded. _If_ he responded.

She shook her head to try and clear her thoughts, looking around the room for something to distract her, anything. As she glanced out the large window in her office she noticed a dark raven sitting on the roof of the building opposite her. Her thoughts unwillingly drifted to her newly hired janitor. Percy, was his name.

She wondered why she could remember his name so clearly, compared to some of her other workers. It’s because she hired him herself, she reasoned, nothing more than that. Then she wondered why she had taken the time to hire him personally, when her secretary, Silena, usually handled hiring employees, other than those who worked on the design and planning process for the firm’s various projects.

Annabeth tapped her hands on her desk impatiently, annoyed her coffee wasn’t ready yet. Which is the only reason she was annoyed. There was no other reason, she told herself.

Still, her mind drifted back to the boy with the sad, sea green eyes. She felt something stir in her chest when she remembered how sad he looked that day he delivered her pizza. She wanted to help him, she thought to herself. It was just pity, that’s all. _I have a boyfriend,_ she thought. Well, she _maybe_ had a boyfriend.

Finally the coffee machine dinged, and Annabeth sighed in relief. She _really_ needed her coffee this morning.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy was milling about, getting used to the monotony, when suddenly he looked up to see a very big man with a scowl on his face approaching him quickly. Percy didn’t remember doing anything that would make someone angry at him, but acknowledged to himself that didn’t mean he hadn’t.

“Excuse me,” the large man said, “are you the newly hired janitor?”

“Uhh, yes that’s me,” Percy said. He was anxious; the man was still scowling at him.

He nodded in response. “You got any mechanical skills?”

The question caught Percy off guard. “Uh, like can I fix stuff? No, not really… I mean, I’m just the janitor. Maybe talk to maintenance?”

Big Man grunted. “Part of your job description is being able to do general, small repairs, the easy stuff. That way maintenance can focus on bigger things if needed. And,” he said, pointing to the company name on his uniform, which Percy hadn’t noticed before, “I _am_ maintenance.”

“Oh. So, uh…” Percy shifted uncomfortably. “If you’re the other maintenance guy, how come I haven’t seen you around before?”

The other man shrugged. “It’s a pretty big building.”

An awkward silence descended on both of them, but Mr. Maintenance (Percy liked to think that sounded cool) seemed unbothered. Deciding to extend the hand of friendship - or at least camaraderie, Percy held his hand out. “I’m Percy Jackson.”

Mr. Maintenance took it in his larger, callused hand, which dwarfed Percy’s. “Charles Beckendorf. But you can call me Beckendorf. Or,” he wrinkled his nose, “Charlie.”

Percy got the impression Beckendorf would really rather not be called Charlie. He didn’t want to get on his coworker’s bad side, partially because he figured this guy could break him in half if he wanted to, and partially because Percy figured nobody else in this building would bother making friends with a janitor.

“No worries, man, I’ll call you Beckendorf.”

Beckendorf inclined his head with something that looked akin to a smile. “Thanks. I appreciate it. So anyway, to business; Silena caught me upstairs earlier and she said I should see if you had any general maintenance skills, and to teach you if you didn’t. So follow me,” and without waiting for a response, he turned and began walking away. 

“Oh…” Percy furrowed his brow in confusion. “Who?”

Beckendorf stopped short and turned back to look at him, his expression confused. “Silena. The girl that hired you.”

Percy looked even more stumped. “I haven’t met a Silena before. I just put my application in online and was sent a message saying I got the job,” Percy said slowly.

Beckendorf raised his eyebrows slightly. “You mean you didn’t have an interview?”

“Nope,” Percy replied. “I’m assuming that that isn’t normal around here then?” he asked. He had been confused about it before, but decided not to question anyone about it. He was just grateful to have a job. 

Beckendorf frowned, then gave Percy a slight shake of his head. Then he shrugged slightly, turned and began walking away again. Percy had to rush to keep up, but he was looking forward to working with Beckendorf. He seemed like a cool enough guy, and Percy wouldn’t mind having a new friend around the office.

OoOoOoOoO

It was several minutes before Annabeth heard a slight knock on her door. She glanced at the clock on the wall opposite her and frowned slightly. It wasn’t like her secretary to be this late. 

“Come in, Silena,” she said without looking up from her desk. She heard the door gently open and close and waited until Silena approached her desk before setting her schematics down and addressing her secretary.

Silena was a cute girl, small with curly brown hair and brown eyes. She was very fashion forward, as well. If Annabeth cared about that sort of thing, she’d probably be jealous. 

“Hello, _O Wise one_!”

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Hi to you, too.”

Silena pulled out a chair and sat down in it. “So, how is my favorite boss of my favorite architecture company doing on this fine day?”

“I’m your only boss,” she said shortly. 

Silena laughed. “So cranky today, Beth. Did something happen with… you know… Luke?” Her cheerful demeanor faded away into mild concern.

Annabeth shrugged, looking away. “We haven’t talked lately.”

“Okay, Annabeth, what’s up? I can tell you’re acting weirdly.” Silena folded her arms across her chest and stared unflinchingly at the blonde woman in front of her. 

With a frustrated huff, Annabeth threw her hands in the air. “Fine, yes, there’s a… thing. It’s just someone that- I don’t know, Silena!”

“Ooh, Annabeth! Is it a guy…?” Silena sang. “I’m glad you got over Luke, Beth, he was no good for you. Hey, but didn’t you say you were going to go on another date with him, ‘just to see if it works out’?” she asked, her eyebrows scrunching together. 

Annabeth slumped down in her chair. “Yeah, so… I kind of… missed the date. I was working and I fell asleep and I didn’t mean to but I think I just drank too much coffee and kind of… crashed, you know? I tried to call him back afterwards to apologize, but he won’t reply. I don’t know what to do.” Annabeth buried her head in her hands and sighed.

Silena pursed her lips. She loved her boss, and hated to see her like this, but Annabeth had to make the decision to leave Luke on her own; Silena couldn’t do it for her, no matter how much she tried. The best Silena could do was support her friend when she needed it.

“Things will work out Beth, one way or another,” Silena said gently. “For now let’s get your mind off things. Tell me about this new guy, maybe that’ll help?”

Annabeth flushed. She didn’t really want to tell Silena about Percy yet, especially not that he was her newest employee, who she hired personally. “Look, I’m not sure what’s going on there, if anything is going on at all. Right now, I just want to figure out what to do about Luke. He is still my boyfriend, after all.”

There was a loud, sharp ding from the table, startling both girls. Annabeth quickly reached for her phone, but before she even saw the message she felt a building sense of dread.

And sure enough, there it was.

_Luke: I think we should break up._


	5. Chapter 5

"So…" Beckendorf gestured down a flight of stairs. "After you."

Percy swallowed. "Couldn't we have just taken the elevator?"

The area below was dimly lit, with what looked like cleaning tools propped up against the walls, and something that could have been a chainsaw lying on a table in the center. It was either a storage space or a scene out of a creepy horror movie, where the stupid main character gets decapitated.

Beckendorf flicked on a light switched Percy hadn't seen before. The room, in better lighting, looked rather… bland. Minimal decoration, and mostly all cleaning/maintenance supplies in a haphazard arrangement.

"This is where we keep all the cleaning and maintenance materials. I'm not actually sure why we got a whole floor for it, but… here it is."

"It's, um…" The right word for it would probably be _disorganized,_ Percy thought. Everything was either shoved against the wall or placed on a table to make room for people to walk. He finally settled on, "not as messy as my room." Which might or might not have been true.

Beckendorf grunted in response (which Percy noticed he seemed to do a lot) and began pointing out different objects. "There's some keys hanging on the wall over there, and underneath that is… I'm not sure. The guy who worked here before me was a little… weird. On that table over there is a chainsaw, but I'm not sure _why_ it's there or if it's even allowed. We don't use it or talk about it.

"The wall on the right is just mops and brooms and water buckets. And probably rags, but I haven't looked much. Also, don't touch anything I tell you not to," Beckendorf added seriously.

Percy scanned the room, trying to make sense of it all. "Why not?" he asked.

Beckendorf ran his hand through his hair. "Well," he said, "cause there's no guarantee it won't _blow up_."

Percy did a double take. "Um, did you say blow up? As in, explode?"

Beckendorf laughed at the look on Percy's face. "Like I said, the guy before me was something pretty close to a pyromaniac. He probably would've done better in the engineering industry than janitorial work."

"Engineering bombs, maybe," Percy muttered. Then he looked up and asked, "Who was the guy before you? I'd like to know if I've seen him in any criminal headlines."

Beckendorf smiled slightly. "His last name was Valdez, never got the first. Never even met him actually, just heard the stories. Got fired for reasons unknown, but based on what I've heard, I'm guessing it was because he set something on fire or blew it up," Beckendorf replied.

Percy got the feeling there was more to the story than that, though from the look on his face Percy wasn't sure if Mr. Maintenance was disgusted or impressed, and he didn't think he wanted to know.

Beckendorf raised a fist to his mouth and cleared his throat. "Anyway, uh, what else? Oh, right, office rules. Don't disturb the boss while she's working unless she requests you. Don't get in the way of her and her coffee unless you want to die."

Percy smirked slightly at that, though he started to blush as he thought of all the moments he'd spent with her. Those gorgeous blonde curls, those stormy grey eyes… Percy shook his head slightly to knock himself out of it, embarrassed. Thankfully Beckendorf didn't seem to notice he had zoned out.

"... so as a general rule, just try to get things done quickly and quietly. Most people here think they're above guys like you and me. Some are nice though, like Silena, she's pretty sweet..." Beckendorf drifted off, and though it was hard for Percy to tell, he thought Beckendorf may have been blushing.

"Um, anyway," Beckendorf said quickly, "you'll pick up on who is friendly and who isn't while you're here. But there is one last rule you may need to know." He pulled at his collar, like it was too tight. "No office romances. Company policy. Any questions?"

Percy felt like he'd been punched in the stomach, hard. And as someone who had been in plenty of fights in the past, he was very familiar with that feeling.

He looked down at his hands, a wave of disappointment overwhelming him. There hadn't even been anything between them before, but now that he knew it wasn't even an option, it hurt more. Then he remembered she had a boyfriend, which just made him feel worse. Even if they were having troubles, Percy was sure Mystery Boyfriend was still a better option than him. She was the CEO of a big architecture firm, she was educated and probably pretty rich and unbelievably beautiful… and Percy wasn't. And he never would be any of those things.

He could barely hold onto a job for more than a week at a time, and he had had literally dozens in his adult life. He hadn't even finished high school, since he needed to be there for his mom. He had no future, no reason for anyone to want to be with him. The only girlfriend he'd ever had had made that pretty clear to him when she left. He just wanted to give up.

Percy jumped slightly when Beckendorf put his large hand on Percy's slumped shoulders. He looked up to see Beckendorf with his head turned away, but realized he was trying to comfort him.

He'd been in his own head for a while and it was making Beckendorf feel uncomfortable, he thought. He felt bad about that, but when he started to say something to try to alleviate the tension, Beckendorf spoke up.

"I get it man. We don't need to talk about it, but I get it."

Honestly, that was probably the best thing he could've said to ease Percy's nerves. Percy felt his chest swell with… something, he wasn't sure what. It just felt good to not be alone, to be understood.

Percy just gave him a nod, not trusting his voice to keep from cracking, and Beckendorf gave him a nod back, with an awkward but friendly smile on his lips. Percy hoped he and Mr. Maintenance would be good friends.

"Well, uh, anyway," said Beckendorf, wringing his hands and thoroughly clearing any lingering tension in the air, "I still need to run you through some of the basics regarding maintenance. We won't get through everything today, but we might as well get started."

Percy smiled. "Yeah, that sounds good to me, man."

As Beckendorf led him over to one of the less cluttered tables and began grabbing various tools, Percy decided he was gonna try really hard to keep working here, whatever that took.

OoOoOoOoO

_Luke: I think we should break up._

As Annabeth read and reread that text, all the tension and dread that had built up over the last few days finally overwhelmed her.

"Oh my gods." Annabeth gasped. "Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods."

She switched to the phone app and began dialing his number (which she had memorized). "Okay, okay, okay, please pick up…"

Nothing.

She tried again.

And again.

And again.

"Beth," Silena gently laid her hand on Annabeth's arm. "I think that's enough. He's… obviously not going to answer. Besides, I think-"

"He could just be busy," Annabeth protested, shoving Silena's hand off. "I'll just call him one more time - one more time, okay?"

" _Annabeth_ ," Silena's voice turned unnaturally stern. "You need to let it go. It's probably for the best. Beth, he- he _cheated_ on you. He probably broke up because he felt guilty."

Annabeth drew in a shuddering breath. "Silena, I- we- I didn't want it to end like this. I really-" she started tearing up, which was uncommon for her. "I really liked him, you know? It's just-" the words came spilling out one after another. "I've known him since high school, we've been through so much together, and we've dated for _years_ and it's my fault because I started working more and stopped spending time with him and I _know_ he didn't mean to mess up like that because I know him. If he really lost interest then he would just break up with me. Which… he… just… oh."

Cold realization poured over her.

Silena patted her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Beth. And I also can't _believe_ he broke up with you over _text_! That's just- such a cowardly thing to do. Couldn't even bother to break your heart in _person_ , what a douchebag."

Seeing Annabeth's distressed expression, she added, "it's not your fault, Annabeth. People… come and go… and, um, it's _never_ one person's fault when the relationship ends…" Silena blushed in embarrassment. "Sorry, I'm not really helping, am I?"

Annabeth shrugged. "No, you're fine," she replied hollowly. "You can keep going. I don't mind."

Listening to Silena's familiar voice defending her really did help a lot - if she tried, she could even imagine Silena was ranting about something like her favorite shoes getting dirty because some car splashed mud on her while driving, or something equally trivial.

Silena could tell her friend wasn't paying attention. "That's it. You need something to distract you from… _him_ ," Silena declared. "I'm going to find something."

Involuntarily, Annabeth's thoughts drifted to the man with black hair and green eyes.

_A distraction, huh?_

She sharply drew in a breath. _How can I be thinking of him when Luke just-?_ Guilt swelled in her chest. _I thought about him when I was still with Luke, too…_

_Gods, I'm just as bad as Luke! I can't believe myself, what was I thinking? If I had been more faithful, maybe this wouldn't have-_

"Annabeth." Silena's voice was surprisingly sharp, snapping Annabeth's attention back to her long-time friend. "That's enough. I can see you overthinking this, I know you are."

Silena's expression softened, and when she spoke again, she was more gentle. "I told you, this isn't your fault. I've been your best friend for a while now, and I know everything that's gone on between you and Luke. When I said it was for the best you two aren't together anymore, I meant it. I'm not even sure if you've realized it, but you've been unhappy for a long time now. You always tried more than him, but even you haven't been putting in as much effort lately. Which is okay. It just means you two have been drifting apart for a while now."

Annabeth started to argue that it's because she hadn't put in as much effort that things were like this, but Silena wouldn't hear it. "Really think about it Annabeth; when's the last time you had good feelings about your relationship with him? And I mean your current relationship, not how things used to be," she said, raising her eyebrows.

Again, Annabeth started to respond, but this time she cut herself short. She gave a moment to let her friends' words really sink in. And as much as she didn't want to admit it to herself, maybe Silena had a point.

"I- I don't know," she whispered. "A long time, I guess."

Silena nodded her head, her face full of sympathy. "It's okay Beth, it's okay."

"Maybe I haven't been happy, but I still love him, Silena. I can't just stop feeling that so suddenly. I- I don't know what to do." Annabeth put elbows on her desk and hung her head in her hands.

Silena pursed her lips, trying to think of a way to comfort her friend. She needed to get her focused on something else.

Just then, an idea struck. Silena smiled and pulled out her phone. She'd have to switch some things around, but they weren't that busy today, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Annabeth, meanwhile, was trying to make sense of the emotions swirling inside her. She still loved Luke. However, they had been drifting apart for a while, and they weren't really happy together. But she'd been with him for so long, and known him for longer, it was hard to just let go like this.

Should she try again? Should she let him go? Should she ask if they could still be friends? Then, with a shock, she wondered if she even wanted that.

She'd spent so long trying to fix things, she stopped questioning why she was the only one trying. She was a doer; she handled problems. But it hadn't occurred to her that she might deserve better.

Just then, a snapping sound caught Annabeth's attention. "Beth? Earth to Annabeth! Did you hear me?" Silena waved her hand in front of her face.

Annabeth blinked. "Sorry, Silena, what'd you say?"

"I _said,_ I just cleared both of our schedules for the day!" Silena beamed.

Annabeth immediately stood up and slammed her hands on the table. "You _what_?"

Silena raised her hands in a plactating manner. "You need a _break_ , darling! You're so stressed out, and working so much is _not_ going to help, believe me. I'm sure you think that it can drown out your thoughts of him or whatever, but not today! _You_ need a change of pace, so _we_ are going to the mall." Silena declared.

Annabeth groaned. "Silena, no…"

"Silena, yes~!" She sang.

"I don't think-"

"Annabeth, Annabeth, Annabeth." Silena laid her hands on her shoulders. "Do you trust me?"

Annabeth eyed her nervously. "Well…"

"Don't answer that! You only ever go home and go to work, so we're going somewhere else today, and we are going to do something just for fun. No arguments, Beth. I love you, and I love working here _with_ you but when was the last time you had a break?"

She tried to think of a comeback, but quickly gave up. Annabeth sighed in frustration; she knew it was futile to argue with her long-time best friend while she was like this. "Fine, Silena, but at least give me a little time to… clear up some things. I'll go with you after, I promise."

"Okay," Silena finally relented. "After." She folded her arms across her chest. "By which I mean you have 10 minutes."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Fifteen."

Silena nodded, smiling. "Deal."

Annabeth sat back down to quickly rifle through and review a large project she was working on, but noticed Silena didn't move from where she was, nor did she unfold her arms. Annabeth sighed.

She reached for her cup to finish what was left of her favorite drink, and her mind again wandered toward the man with raven hair and sad, sea green eyes. Percy. He was working as a barista when she met him.

She needed to get some more coffee, she thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> here's your... kind of belated update!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY I'M SORRY I SCREWED UP AND POSTED THE SAME CHAPTER THAT I POSTED ON FFNET WHICH IS BAD BECAUSE... I FORGOT THE CHAPTER SCHEDULE WAS OUT OF WHACK AND OOPS AND I'M THE WORST AUTHOR EVER  
> *please forget everything you read pretty please*  
> thanks to Fritzy for pointing it out to me! I owe you one, haha  
> (please don't kill me)

"Silena," Annabeth groaned as she was dragged past rows and rows of cars into the horror Annabeth would call a _shopping mall_. "I don't think this is very… relaxing."

"That's ridiculous!" Silena beamed. "There is _nothing_ more relaxing than a spa day and a shopping spree. And… there's a coffee shop." She winked salaciously, and, against her will, Annabeth was hooked.

She squinted her eyes and frowned. "Fine. But _only_ for two hours!"

Silena reached up and patted her head. "Two hours. Oh, Beth, you're so cute."

Before Annabeth could protest any further, she found herself being dragged into the strip mall by her overly enthusiastic friend. Silena easily led them through the semi crowded mall, and Annabeth realized she would probably be forced to stay here _all day._

Now resigned to her fate however, time passed surprisingly quickly. Silena pulled her in and out of shops, forcing Annabeth to try things on here and there, nearly none of which Annabeth bought. At one point Silena had her in a dark green sleeveless dress that showed off her long blonde hair and her slim athletic figure, and a nice set of dark grey owl-shaped earrings _(to match your eyes,_ Silena had said). Even Annabeth had to admit they _did_ look pretty good on her. As soon as she was out of them Silena snatched them up and bought it for her.

"Silena," she protested, "you didn't have to do that. I'm an adult, I can buy my own clothes."

Silena sighed.

"Yes, Beth, you can buy your own clothes, but would you have?" she asked patiently.

Her silence spoke volumes.

Silena smiled slightly. She shook her head and mumbled, "Girl, you're a mess…" before dragging Annabeth off again.

Annabeth noticed Silena wasn't buying much for herself, which she thought was strange; she'd seen pictures of the huge hauls that girl would go home with. When she asked about it, Silena waved her hand dismissively.

"This day is about you, darling, not me. Even I can reel myself in when I need to," she said.

"Is that it, or is it just we don't have anyone here to carry things for you?" Annabeth asked wryly.

Silena narrowed her eyes. "You make it surprisingly difficult to love you sometimes, Beth, you know that?"

Annabeth laughed. "Maybe so, I guess. But hey, if today is supposed to be about me, shouldn't I decide what stores to go in?"

Silena blinked in surprise. "Well, sure, of course. I just assumed you wouldn't go in anywhere unless I made you. Where do you want to go?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes and began walking in the opposite direction, waving her hand in a, 'follow me,' motion. "Even _I_ have things I'm interested in, Silena, it's just not clothes."

Silena shrugged and began following her back the way they had come.

After half a minute of walking they came to a little book shop. Silena rolled her eyes.

She huffed dramatically. "I should've figured. Of the places we could go to together, you pick a bookstore."

Annabeth ignored her. "If it's my day, I should get to go where I want. Plus I need to pick up some reference for a project I'm working on. My newest client wants to create some sort of art installation, which is outside of what I normally do, but I'm excited for the challenge."

Silena stopped walking. She frowned at Annabeth. "The new client? Annabeth, darling, the whole point of coming here was to _get away_ from work. We aren't going to come here to do _more_ work."

Annabeth scowled at her. " _I_ thought the whole point of coming here was to distract me, and I am distracted. I enjoy what I do, Silena, and I'm excited about this project. And that's not the only reason I wanted to come in here," she snapped at her.

Silena's mouth hung open slightly. Annabeth took a deep breath and sighed.

"Look," she said, "I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you like that. I'm just… today's been… I'm sorry." Annabeth looked down, ashamed at herself for snapping at the one really close friend she still had, especially when she was trying to help her.

Silena put her hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, Annabeth," she said softly. "It's okay. Let's go take a look around the bookstore, huh? Show me what reference you were thinking about getting."

Annabeth looked up at her and smiled gratefully. She was glad Silena worked with her; she had always been a good friend, and if not for that near daily contact she probably would've lost touch with her like most of her other friends. Maybe she should try and reconnect with some of them, she thought.

With renewed determination, Annabeth set out toward the art section of the store. As she walked, she looked back to Silena and said, "I've been thinking a lot about the newest project. I've never been consulted on something like this before, so I think it'll be a nice challenge, and, if things go well, this could open more opportunities for us in the art world."

Silena's eyes lit up in understanding. "Right, that makes more sense. I can see now why you're excited about this, you're always up for a challenge. Plus, I think her seeking to work with you specifically was a nice ego boost," Silena said, a knowing smile on her face.

Annabeth blushed slightly. "Well, after my work at Olympus Towers, she said I was the perfect fit for her work."

"So you've started the planning phase, then?" Silena asked. They had reached the correct aisle by then, and Annabeth quickly searched through the artist's names.

"No, but I've talked to her agent a few times," Annabeth replied. "I'd like to have a better idea of her general style before the first meeting, hence the reference," she said, holding up a book displaying a lone boy with a bronze sword hanging loose in his hand, staring out into the raging sea on a stormy night. "I'm going to meet up with her next week though."

As they walked toward the checkout, Silena smiled at her. "I'm excited for you, Beth. To new beginnings," she said brightly, raising her hand in a mock toast.

As they walked, Annabeth's eyes were drawn toward a cover on the self help section. _Demand better of yourself and the world: how to be happier and know your self worth._

Annabeth hesitated, then she smiled, and reached out to get that book as well.

"To new beginnings."

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth hummed appreciatively when they rounded the corner and came upon the coffee shop. It wasn't particularly big or beautiful, but the air was saturated with the smell of coffee.

She loved it.

"Well? What do you think, O Wise One? Does it match up to your standards?"

Annabeth lightly smacked Silena's arm. "Yeah, it's…" she took a deep breath. "It smells _amazing_ here. Like… coffee. And _happiness_."

Silena laughed. "Coffee addict much? But, yeah, this place has got pretty good coffee. Don't know why you like the smell, though." Silena wrinkled her nose. "It's so… pungent." She shrugged. "Well, each to their own, I suppose!"

The line was relatively short; _mercifully_ Annabeth thought. They made their orders, and as they searched for a seat, warm beverages safely in hand, Silena suddenly let out a high pitched squeal.

"Piper!" She took off quickly toward the far end of the food court, rushing toward a startled woman with choppy brown hair and kaleidoscopic eyes. Annabeth, assuming she wasn't harassing a total stranger, but still wanting to avoid the startled looks her friend was causing, followed behind to try and keep things to a reasonable volume.

By the time she got there, they were already engaged in a friendly conversation. Silena, noticing Annabeth, claps her hands and exclaims, "Sorry, I'm being rude. Introductions are in order!

"Piper, Annabeth. Annabeth, Piper. She-" Silena pointed to Piper "-is my half-sister. She," pointing to Annabeth, "is my… coworker. Boss. Best friend."

Annabeth extended her hand. "Nice to meet you, Piper…?"

"McLean."

"Oh!" Annabeth's eyes widened in surprise. "I recognize that name! Is your mother Aphrodite McLean? My mother knew yours, and I worked with my mom to rebuild her workplace after it burned down."

Piper smiled. "So you're Annabeth… Chase, then? Honestly, I'm surprised you didn't recognize me for my father. He's… pretty famous, now. But, um, yeah, I've heard of you."

Annabeth smiled sheepishly. "Well, I don't watch a lot of movies or tv," she said.

"Or have much of a social life at all, really," Silena said casually, looking away and sipping her tea.

Annabeth glared at her while Piper laughed. "Well, it's not my fault I actually _work_ instead of gossip."

"Oh, don't mind her. I've learned to take most of what Silena says about people with a grain of salt, even if she means well," Piper said, winking at Annabeth conspiratorially.

Silena frowned while Annabeth laughed at her expense. "Hey! That's mean!" she pouted.

"Don't worry, 'Lena, I still love you." Piper patted her arm affectionately. "Even when you try to take me on these gross shopping sprees."

"You too?" Annabeth was surprised. She realized she'd just assumed enjoying shopping ran in Aphrodite McLean's bloodline.

"Aww, you're both teaming up on me!" Silena complained. "That's not fair! I demand back-up!"

Piper smiled slyly. "Well, you could borrow my boyfriend."

Silena's eyes widened in shock and she slapped her hands down on the table. "What?!" She shouted. "Since when do you have a _boyfriend_?!"

Piper smirked. "Since two weeks ago."

Silena blanched. "Oh my _gods_ , two _weeks_ ago? Who is he? How did it happen? And why're you only telling me this _now?_ My _gods_ , Piper, I thought we were sisters! This is a betrayal of the _highest degree_. I cannot. Believe you! Hmph! Annabeth, we're leaving!"

Annabeth pulled her friend back down. "Silena, hush, you're making a scene."

Piper giggled. "What a drama queen. Hey, Silena, if you promise not to take me shopping for another month, I _might_ let you meet him~!"

"You would try and blackmail me into spending less time with you, just so I can meet this new man in your life?!" Silena's eyes narrowed. "I'll find him on my own if you make this difficult, Piper. I have my ways."

Piper rolled her eyes. "You can try, but I've been sure to be extra careful. Partially because of you, mainly because of the paparazzi. I don't want either of you scaring him off."

Silena huffed indignantly. "We'll see, Piper. We'll see."

Annabeth watched them banter back and forth like siblings; which, she remembered, they were. She'd always wished for a relationship like that, but her only siblings were both several years younger than her, and she wasn't very close with her family anyway.

"Now, go away." Piper made shoo-ing motions with her hands. "I'm busy with a… coworker and I don't know why he's taking so long getting our food **,** but when he comes back, you two can _not_ be here."

Silena scoffed. "Aren't you a _tutor_? How do you have coworkers?"

"Well- I'm not the _only_ tutor- we have a- system- for finding people. And, um, he's… helping me. Find people. To tutor." Piper coughed.

"Ohhh~" Silena sang. "Sure, Pipes~! We'll be going now! C'mon, Annabeth, let's leave Piper with her _coworker_."

"Oh my gods." Piper muttered. "Just go away, please." Piper pulled a pen out of her pocket, scribbled something down on a napkin, and handed it to Annabeth. "Annabeth, here's my number. I just got a new phone. Please don't share it with Silena or she'll spam me. Thanks! Nice meeting you, hope we can be friends, bye! And take Silena with you," she said meaningfully.

"What do you _mean_ 'don't share it with Silena'? Piper McLean, I'm going to-"

Annabeth grabbed her arm and dragged her away. "Bye, Piper, nice meeting you, talk sometime later, haha! See you around!" Piper waved back gratefully as they receded into the distance.

Once they got far enough away, Annabeth finally let Silena go and watched as she dusted herself off. Once she finished, she glared balefully at Annabeth, and she stifled a laugh.

Silena opened her mouth, and from her expression Annabeth thought she was about to say something very rude, but then her eyes widened and her hands shot up to cover her mouth. For a moment, Annabeth was worried, but then Silena started to squeal excitedly, so she assumed she was mostly alright.

"Annabeth, Annabeth, I just had the best idea! Let's go back and stalk them! I'm sure they aren't done eating yet, we can totally catch them! C'mon, Annie, pleeeease?" her eyes were big and pleading and impossible to resist.

Annabeth resisted them.

"No, Silena," she said, rolling her eyes. "Let's give your sister her privacy. If you're good I'll tell her, and maybe she'll give you her number after all," Annabeth said teasingly.

Silena narrowed her eyes. "Or you could give it to me, since you're my best, best friend who loves me ever so much…?"

Annabeth struggles to keep a straight face. "Not a chance," she said, turning on her heel to walk away.

Silena grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. "Oh, come on, Beth," she whined, "please? Pretty please? Gorgeous please?"

Annabeth just smiled back, enjoying her friend's dismay. It was what she'd been feeling all day, after all, only fair to share the discomfort.

But as Annabeth thought back on it, on meeting Piper and the bookstore and the dress, about how hard Silena had tried to cheer her up, she couldn't help but be grateful. _A distraction,_ Silena has said. She had certainly been distracted today. And, somewhat unbidden, her mind wandered to another possible _distraction_ in her future. But that would be a problem for another day.

"Fine, Annabeth," Silena pouted. "Let's just continue our day off!" She looked around, noticing they were just outside a little day-spa. She grinned widely at Annabeth. "And since, obviously, we're already here… let's get massages!"

Annabeth groaned. _Never mind,_ she thought grumpily, _there's always time for it to get worse._ Silena laughed at Annabeth's expression and dragged her, unwillingly, inside.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy walked down the stairs, humming a song, feeling much lighter after his talk with Beckendorf. It was nice to have someone to confide in. Especially about… certain other people.

Percy was nearly to the door when he bumped into a slightly taller blonde man with clear blue eyes.

"Oh! Hi, sorry, didn't you see- see you there. Um, don't think I've seen you around here before." Percy said, catching himself.

The other man smiled. "You probably haven't. I don't work here. I'm just here to… find someone. Annabeth Chase? Do you know where she is?"

Percy wondered if this was a potential new client. He didn't want to make a bad impression on him; it might reflect badly on the company, and he liked his job here.

"Um, I'm sorry but I believe she took the day off earlier. I could… let her know you were looking for her?" _Or find someone else more important to,_ Percy thought. _Someone she'd want to see._

The man frowned, his eyes closing. "Right." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

When he opened his eyes again, they were friendly, but subdued. "I appreciate the offer, but no thanks. I think it'd be best to discuss things… in person. But again, I appreciate your help, man."

Percy straightened up slightly. "Of course, sir."

The man laughed. "Please, don't call me sir. It makes me feel like some old, douchey business guy, and that is not how I want to treat people," he said, giving Percy a slight, but genuine smile. "What's your name, man?"

Percy tentatively smiled back. "It's Percy. Percy Jackson."

The blond man smiled wide, and thrust forward his hand. Percy took it and as they shook, the man said,

"Nice to meet you Percy. I'm Luke."


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shh let's pretend last week didn't happen and I never royally screwed up yeah?
> 
> in case you don't know what I mean - I posted the wrong chapter. yeah. messed up. sorry for all the confusion

Annabeth needed this massage more than she’d realized.

It wasn’t a particularly good one; he dug his knuckles too hard into her back, didn’t focus long enough where she would’ve liked and all in all seemed rather sloppy about it. Still, she was full of stress, and this hurt in a  _ mostly _ pleasant way. 

Beside her, Silena - well, she appeared to be flirting with the masseuse.

“Silena,” she groaned. “Please, shut up.”

Silena winked at her but otherwise ignored her request. Annabeth sighed in frustration.

“Try to relax,” her masseuse said. He sounded bored. “It’ll feel better if you relax.”

_ I thought the whole point of this was to make me relaxed,  _ Annabeth thought.  _ If I could relax on my own why would I even come here? _

Still, she said nothing and tried to do as he asked, to little avail. 

After that, Annabeth really just tried to tune out the world. The way this masseuses’ hands either didn’t know what they were doing or just didn’t care enough to do it well, or Silena’s attempt at flirting (which Annabeth vaguely noted seemed to be going well), and all the noise from the people passing by in the mall itself.

She decided to let her mind wander. At first her thoughts drifted to Luke, which prompted her masseuse to again ask her to relax-  _ He’s the one annoyed with me? This is his job! _ \- so she tried to clear her mind again and go elsewhere.

She thought about that art piece on the cover of that book, the one with the lone boy staring at the ocean in the pouring rain. It evoked powerful emotions in her; it was melancholic and sad, but also… liberating.

It was dark, stormy and raining, and the sea looked powerful, wild and violent, but the boy didn’t seem to mind. Or maybe he just accepted there was nothing he could do about it. He just stood and watched. Let things be as they were. Let go.

Eventually, Annabeth felt two light taps on her shoulder, signaling her ordeal ( _massage_ ) was finally over. She rolled her shoulders, a grimace on her face. Before, she was tense; now she was hurting _and_ tense.

She decided to pay for both of them- Silena had gotten her that dress and those earrings earlier, so she thought it was only fair- then made her way outside, stretching as she did so. 

Silena caught up a few moments later; she’d been getting the number of her masseuse, and Annabeth hadn’t waited for her. “Beth~ that was rude!”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at her. “You don’t seem to be bothered too much, considering how wide you’re smiling.” Silena stuck her tongue out at her.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but when she looked at Silena again, she frowned. “Um, you’ve got a little something right here…” she said, raising her hand to point to one of her own teeth. 

Silena’s face froze. “Really?” she squeaked out. Annabeth simply nodded.

She immediately began digging through her purse to find a mirror. “No, no no no, I did not just make myself look like an idiot in front of-“ as she held it up to her face to check her teeth, she didn’t see anything. Realization dawned on her, and she scowled at Annabeth, who was struggling to keep a straight face.

“You,” she said, her voice low and menacing, “are lucky I’m being extra nice to you today.”

Annabeth busted out laughing. “Oh, come on,” she said, walking towards the malls’ exit, “you know that was funny.”

Silena followed, her expression stiff. “That definitely was not funny. I nearly had a heart attack!”

Annabeth waved her hand dismissively. “You’re being dramatic. You’d be laughing if it was me.”

Silena’s eyes narrowed at her. “ _ I _ would never do that to you because  _ I _ am a good friend!”

“Ouch. I guess I deserved that.” Annabeth smiled sheepishly at Silena, who still looked upset.

She sighed. “Sorry. And no, you are not just a good friend- you are  _ the best friend. _ ”

Annabeth wanted to gag at how cheesy that sounded, but it had the intended effect- Silena’s expression softened and her eyes turned misty.

“Oh, Annabeth!” she squealed, as she tacklehugged her friend so hard they nearly both fell over.

“Whoa, easy! I love you too, now get off me!” Annabeth yelped, laughing as she tried to pry her friend off of her.

Silena looked up at her, eyes wide. “You really mean that?”

Annabeth sighed and patted her head.  _ What a child. _ “Yes, Silena, I really meant it. Today has been… what I needed, I think, even if I didn’t want it. So thank you for making me get out of the office today. And for being a good friend.”

“The  _ best _ friend,” Silena said proudly.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “Yes, Silena, the  _ best _ friend, now don’t let it go to your head, and would you please get off me?”

Silena stuck out her tongue again, but finally released her death grip on her, and they kept walking.

The sun was just setting as they made their way into the parking lot.  _ This really did take all day,  _ Annabeth thought. Still, she felt like in the end it had been worth it. She wasn’t completely over Luke yet; she needed proper closure, a face to face meeting for that, and even then it might still hurt for a while. However, she could finally accept she deserved better out of a relationship.

Just as they were about to part ways as they headed for their separate cars, Annabeth hesitated a moment, then pulled Silena into a tight hug.

“Thanks,” she whispered. “For today.”

Just as quickly she let go, and promptly started laughing at the shocked look on her face.

“Did you just hug me? Like, on your own?” Silena asked, stunned.

Annabeth just smiled, the warmth from the sun soaking into her after a long day. “No idea what you’re talking about,” she said and abruptly turned on her heel and walked away.

Silena stood there, arms still raised slightly, frozen in shock.

As Annabeth got in her car, she looked back one last time, still smiling brightly, and called out, “Oh, Silena? Bright and early on Monday. We’ve got work to catch up on.”

OoOoOoOoO

“Nice to meet you, Percy. I’m Luke.”

Percy smiled. “Well, Luke, I was just heading home, but is there anything else I can do for you…?” Percy sort of trailed off by the end of his question.  _ What could I do for him, I’m a janitor? And why am I being so formal? _

Luke tried to suppress a laugh. “No, thanks though man, I appreciate it.” He sighed. “Honestly, there’s no reason for me to be here either, I guess, so I’ll walk out with you.”

Percy nodded and they both turned toward the door. Once outside they both turned in the same direction and began walking.

Luke, a little awkwardly, asked, “Headed for the subway?” Percy nodded again. 

“Well, guess we’ll have each other’s company a little longer then!” Luke smiled again in a friendly way, and Percy couldn’t help smiling back. Luke seemed like a very charismatic person.

It was a little weird at first, but as they walked they made idle chit-chat and gradually both of them started to relax. By the time they reached the subway entrance they were talking and laughing like old friends.

As they walked down the stairs they passed a large poster on the wall advertising some pop star's newest album. She had a probably-fake tan, 3 inch heels, skimpy clothing and bleach blonde princess curls. Percy would have forgiven all that, if her music was any good.

Percy figured judging people every now and then wasn’t  _ so _ bad.

As they walked by, Luke glanced at the poster and winced. Percy tilted his head questioningly.

“You alright man? I mean, I think her music is bland, repetitive and clearly missing any solid understanding of what makes a song good, but-“

Luke waved his hands dismissively and began walking again. “No, no, that’s not it.” Luke then narrowed his eyes at Percy, though the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned. “But by all means, tell me how you really feel.”

Percy’s ears turned red. “I’ve just got a thing for music, alright? It’s important to me, and the idea people listen to that garbage and think it’s music makes me feel a little sick sometimes.”

Luke listened to his little rant thoughtfully, but just as he opened his mouth to ask about it, Percy cut him off. “So if it wasn’t the music, what was the problem?”

Luke frowned slightly. He looked back at the poster and sighed. “If you were trying to let someone down easy, how would you do it?”

Percy blinked in surprise. He looked back and forth between the poster and Luke, gears slowly starting to turn in his brain. Luke, noticing a lack of response, figured out what Percy was thinking and started laughing.

“No, that’s- that’s not who I meant,” he choked out between laughs. He straightened up and gathered his thoughts. “She just reminded me of someone. Loosely.”

“Ohhhhhh,” Percy said. He resisted the urge to say,  _ no wonder you want to end things, then, _ because that would be rude. Instead, he tried to think of an answer to his question.

After a moment, he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Sorry, man, I got nothing. The only girl I’ve ever dated dumped me because- because she didn’t feel like our life paths were in sync.”

He thinks that was one of the things she said. Among other, less flattering things, but he’d just met Luke, and he didn’t want to unload his problems onto a stranger. 

Judging by Luke’s expression, he seemed to realize there was more to that story than Percy was letting on, but thankfully he said nothing. He just closed his eyes, leaned back and sighed.

“So why do you need to let this person down gently?” Percy asked. He didn’t mean to pry into this persons’ business, but he was nervous and just wanted to talk about anything other than himself.

Luke pursed his lips. “Well,” he started, “it hasn’t really been going well for a while now. We’ve been drifting apart; she’s spending way more time on her work than she used to, I’ve been traveling a lot more for mine, you know how it goes.”

Percy nodded, despite having no idea what either of those things were like. Luke continued.

“We see each other less and less, we talk less and less, we enjoy spending time together less and less. This relationship has really been over for a while now, but she’s kept trying to make it work, and she’s still important to me, so I’ve sort of just… let her keep trying.”

Percy felt bad for him; it seemed like he was a good guy in a difficult position. Then, Luke said,

“But it didn’t work. And I- I got way too drunk one night and I… I sort of… messed up,” he mumbled.

At that point, Percy might’ve been inclined to think less of him, but his face was twisted up with such shame and genuine remorse Percy still felt bad for him. He was still in the wrong, but at least he was sorry about it.

Percy gently patted him on the shoulder. It was weird to be comforting a stranger who had just admitted to cheating on his girlfriend, but Percy didn’t like to see people be sad. He almost had to help, however he could.

“I’m not sure what to say, man,” he said honestly.

Luke took a deep breath. He tried to smile, but it didn’t really touch his eyes. “You don’t have to say anything, Percy. Just listening has been a big help already.”

Percy blinked, then nodded.  _ I guess that makes sense,  _ he thought. Luke looked up as the latest train pulled in.

“Well, that’s me. I guess I might see you around, Percy.” He looked doubtful as he said it, but Percy still waved anyway.

“It’s been nice talking with you, Luke. You’ll figure things out,” he said.

Luke nodded. “Thanks, man.” He paused, just before he stepped on, and looked back. Almost as an afterthought he said, “You will too, you know? Someday, you’ll figure things out.” Then he stepped on board and the train doors closed behind him.

Percy just sat there for a while, listening to the garbage some people called music and wondering if it was possible Luke could be right. Percy doubted it, but it was nice to pretend all the same.

OoOoOoOoO

The sky was dark and moody, painted grey with flashes of bright light piercing through here and there. Percy had caught several droplets of rain to the face already, and he did not want to be out here when it really picked up.

He looked around for a place he could duck into, and noticed a small cafe he hadn’t been to before. In bold, stylized orange letters it read  _ CHB: Coffee House & Breakfast. _

He rushed over (it was already raining more heavily), and ducked inside.  _ I should’ve brought an umbrella, _ he thought, running his fingers through his hair to try and get some of the rain out.

The cafe was oddly empty, except for one woman with blonde hair, bending over a notebook in a corner.

“Welcome, sir!” A girl with golden hair and golden eyes to match waved at him from behind the counter. Percy awkwardly waved back. “What can I get for you today?”

He stepped up to the counter. “Um… just hot chocolate. A medium, please,” he mumbled quietly.

She smiled at him warmly. “Of course sir. May I get a name?”

He nodded. “Percy.”

She hummed absently as she typed in his order. “That’s a nice name. Is it short for Percival?”

He laughed quietly. “Perseus, actually. Like the old Greek hero. Mom said he’s the only one who ever got a happy ending.”

The barista’s golden eyes twinkled mischievously. “That’s a sweet story. Thanks for telling me that.” 

Despite getting the feeling she was in on some joke he wasn’t, she spoke with such sincerity that Percy couldn’t help but ask, “What about you?”

She paused just before she started his drink, and her brow furrowed. “I’m sorry?”

Percy clicked his tongue. “No offense, but, ‘Sorry,’ is sort of a strange name.”

Understanding lit up her eyes and she laughed. “Oh, I see how it is. My name is Hazel,” she said, returning to her work.

“And where did you get that from?” he asked.

She raised an eyebrow. “My mom?” she said it like a question, but he knew she was teasing him. 

He made a face. She laughed again, and he thought he heard a small laugh from the only other patron, but when he looked over to glare at her she was just looking away.

“I’m just teasing,” she said, finishing up his drink. “Apparently when I was born, my eyes were hazel, so talk about uninspired. All the green has obviously left by now though.” She shrugged. 

Percy scoffed. “Are you kidding? I think that’s cool. The fact that your eyes were so overwhelmingly powerful that they  _ gave  _ you your name, then went and changed anyway, like, they’d be cool however they looked.”

His expression softened. “But for real, I think it’s cool your name literally came from a part of you. Like, most people have that decided for them; this thing they have to live with all their lives, and yours literally came from a part of who you are. Isn’t that cool?”

Hazel had been writing out something on a piece of paper, but she stopped part way through once Percy started speaking more genuinely. It was quiet for a moment, and she looked thoughtful. “I suppose you make a good point,” she said.

She smiled softly. “Most people think that’s a silly reason to name someone.” She slid the paper over his drink and handed it to him shyly. “Thanks,” she said quietly.

Percy grinned widely. “Don’t mention it.”

There was a crash in the back, and Hazel sighed. “I’ll be right back,” she grumbled, heading off into the back room.

Percy looked around the small cafe. Nobody else had come in yet, and the person in the far corner ducked her head again just as he turned. He wondered if she had been watching that whole exchange. Maybe she was shy?

Behind him, there was a loud crack of lightning. Loud enough it briefly shook the place. Percy looked out the window; the rain had really picked up now. He couldn’t even see the buildings on the other side of the street.

Resigned to the fact that he would be here for a while, he sent a text to his mom, letting her know he was safe, out of the rain and going to be very, very late.

He looked at the person in the corner of the room again. Those blonde curls seemed familiar, but he couldn’t remember where he’d seen them from. Her face was currently buried behind her notebook, but he wondered if that was just because she was shy.

He shrugged. He decided to go over and say hello. If she was really that busy she’d just tell him to go away, and he could handle that.

He made his way over, seemingly unnoticed, since, as he sat down just across from her, a very familiar, very startled face lifted up from behind the pad.

“Annabeth?! I mean, uh, Ms. Chase?” Percy squeaked out.

Her face flushed. “Um, Percy, right? Listen, you don’t have to call me Ms. Chase outside of work, but I’m… sort of busy right now so if you don’t mind-“

Her voice was drowned out by another wave of rolling thunder, except this time when the flash went, it took the lights with it.

As they sat staring at each other in the darkness, they both heard a male voice from the back whine, “Oh, man!”


	8. Chapter 8

“Oh, man!”

They both heard a man’s voice cry out, but seemingly more out of annoyance than alarm. Annabeth, however, was far too worried about her own problems to care too much.

She hadn’t looked up when the doors first opened; this was a business after all, and she had noticed it was starting to rain outside. When she heard  _ his  _ voice however, that startled her out of her sketchbook. Sure enough, when she peeked up at the counter there he was, awkward and adorable.

She frowned to herself. She didn’t like to think of him as  _ adorable.  _ He worked for her. That could make their working relationship weird. Well, whatever working relationship there was between them. 

As she watched him order, she realized he didn’t have an umbrella, or even a decent jacket. He was still wet from the rain, his messy black hair still dripping, hanging down messily in a way that naturally framed his sea green eyes.

He was wearing a light blue tee shirt and a thin, dark blue hoodie. His shirt was darkened from the rain, and it clung tightly to his chest. He wasn’t really muscular, she thought, but he was lean. She wondered if he worked out.

_ Perseus, huh? Maybe Hero-boy was inspired by his namesake. _

Just as she was thinking to herself,  _ no, he definitely isn’t adorable,  _ his face scrunched together in response to something she hadn’t heard. His expression was oddly childlike: somewhere between  _ are you kidding me,  _ and,  _ okay maybe I deserved that.  _ In spite of herself, she couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

He turned to glare at her in response, but she ducked her head down, her ears turning red. She’d rather not talk to him here. She hoped maybe the rain would let up before his order came through, but once he was focused on the girl at the counter again, Annabeth took one glance out the window before giving up any hope she had of that happening.

Just then she noticed his voice got quieter, more earnest. She decided to listen in to try and pick up on what she’d missed.

He was talking about the barista’s eyes. And how cool he thought her name was. She wrote something down and put it around his drink as she handed it to him. Annabeth couldn’t hear what she said in response, but it sounded like she was smiling. She tightened her grip on her sketchbook.

Just then there was a crash in the back, and the barista excused herself to go see what had happened. Annabeth idly wondered what she would’ve said next if she could’ve stayed and talked with him. She figured she had already given him her number. Would she have asked him out, given the chance? Would he have asked her?

Annabeth told herself she didn’t care, but she found herself gritting her teeth all the same.

She looked up to see his expression, but he turned to look at her at the same moment. She ducked her head down again. No way she was going to talk to him now.

Thunder shook the small shop, briefly startling her. She sighed. She was being ridiculous. It shouldn’t matter if her employee went on a date with some girl in a coffee shop, it wasn’t her business. And that girl was, Annabeth could reluctantly admit, decent. She could see the appeal.

She shook her head.  _ Regardless, it’s not really my busi- _

The chair across from her moved and she looked up, shocked to see him hesitantly sliding into it. She registered the surprise on his face, and imagined she didn’t look much more composed.

“Annabeth?! I mean, uh, Ms. Chase?” he squeaked out.

Her face flushed.  _ What was his name? _ It didn’t even take her a full moment to remember.

“Um, Percy, right? Listen, you don’t have to call me Ms. Chase outside of work, but I’m… sort of busy right now so if you don’t mind-“

Unfortunately, her voice was drowned out by a loud wave of thunder. Even more unfortunately, that latest blast seemed to have taken the power out.

Annabeth could hardly believe her lack of luck.  _ What a mess, _ she thought. It was like the universe was deliberately trying to make her life difficult the last few days.

Percy sat in awkward silence across from her, just staring as if he didn’t know where else to look. She wanted to say something, she just wasn’t sure what. Some more fumbling in the back room however, accompanied by a little  _ gosh darn it, _ managed to break the tension between them.

Percy coughed. “Um, sorry to bother you Ms. Cha- Annabeth. I just, uh, thought maybe you were shy and wanted to talk. I didn’t mean to disturb you. I can, um, leave if you’d like.”

She tightened her lips. He was just trying to be polite, and she was shutting him out. She sighed.

“No, it’s alright. Not like I can keep working on this anyway,” she said, tucking her sketchbook back into her bag. “We might as well talk, considering the circumstances.”

Despite saying this, awkward silence fell over them again. Just then, however, the door to the back room opened and the girl from before came out holding a lit candle.

“I’m sorry,” she said, coming over to place it between them, “we only have two of these in the back. Honestly, we were lucky to find them. I can’t believe the power went out!”

“It’s not your fault,” Percy said. He frowned. “Is everything okay back there? It sounded like someone was hurt earlier.”

The girl looked embarrassed. “Yeah, that was my boyfriend. He’s kind of clumsy. He’s okay, though.”

Percy visibly relaxed. “Okay, good. Why don’t you both come out here? We can all talk for a while, since none of us are going anywhere.”

The girl looked sheepish. “I think we would, but he’s sort of embarrassed. Maybe I can talk him into coming out before you leave though, I think you both would like each other.”

As Annabeth’s eyes adjusted to the dark, she could more easily make out Percy’s responding grin. “I’m sure we would, and tell him I’d love to meet him.”

The barista-  _ Hazel, _ Annabeth made out, squinting to read the girls’ name tag in the darkness- smiled and nodded, and after another few apologies, she left them both alone again.

Percy turned toward her again, not looking quite as awkward as before. He ran a hand through his still damp hair.

“Well, I suppose it’s just us, for the time being. If you’d like to get back to your drawing though, I under-“

Annabeth held up her hand, indicating he should stop. “Alright, first off, you need to stop being so formal. At the firm, I’m your boss, outside of it, I’m just another person, okay?”

Percy nodded, and the tension seemed to fall away from his shoulders. Annabeth bit back a smile.

She nodded. “Good. Second, even with the candle it’s way too dim to sketch, and I was already about to stop anyway, so you aren’t holding me up at all.”

Percy let out a deep breath. “Okay, good. I just wasn’t sure, since you had said you were busy.”

Annabeth stiffened slightly, but in the dark Percy didn’t seem to notice. “Well, I had been thinking about starting the next sketch, but honestly I was probably done anyway, and even if I had wanted to I can’t now, so… let’s just talk for a while.”

Percy nodded, like this made perfect sense to him. Annabeth exhaled slightly in relief.

Only then did they both realize they weren’t sure what to talk about. So, Percy asked the obvious question.

“What were you working on?”

Annabeth bit her lip. “Just something I was inspired to do from an upcoming project. A little doodle of sorts, nothing really work related.”

Percy grinned again, and in the warm, flickering candle light, Annabeth couldn’t help but be reminded of a troublemaking kid- innocent and full of mischief all at once.

“In that case, do you mind if I see it?” he asked.

She was a little hesitant; she didn’t often show her little doodles to people. She mulled it over briefly.

“Only if you tell me what you’re thinking about right now,” she decided.

He stiffened slightly. “Um, why do you want to know?”

She raised her brow. “I saw that look on your face. When I mentioned I was doodling  _ something _ went through your head, and I think if I show it to you I have the right to know what.”

It was hard to tell, but it looked like he might be blushing. “Uh, okay. But only after you show it to me.”

“Hmmm. And what guarantee do I have you’ll tell me, once you’ve gotten what you want?”

He put his hand over his chest in mock disbelief. “Well, I wasn’t expecting you to question my integrity! The nerve! But hey, if it makes you feel any better, we can pinky promise, alright?” He held out his hand, pinky outstretched. 

She scoffed at him, but his eyes were almost glowing with amusement, the soft lighting giving them an almost hypnotic appeal. It affected her more than she was willing to admit.

“Pinky promise? What are we, children?” In spite of herself, her hand lightly reached out to meet his. As they interlocked fingers, she couldn’t help but notice how warm he was.

“Hey, they say never let your inner child die, ya know? And I’m nothing if not childish,” he said proudly, puffing out his chest and resting his fists against his hips in a sort of superhero pose.

Annabeth cracked up at that, as she pulled her sketch pad back out. “On that, we can agree.” As she opened to the page she was working on and turned it around for him to see, she found herself oddly nervous.  _ What will he think? _

He leaned forward and squinted, trying to make out the details. He saw what looked to be a young boy, with clouds and rain, and a dark landscape out in front of him.  _ Hills? Mountains? _ Percy wasn’t sure; it was too dark to tell.

“Well?” Annabeth asked nervously, chewing her lip. “What do you think?”

“I think it looks good. Sad, kind of daunting maybe, but that’s not a bad thing and might just be because it’s so dark in here,” he said.

Annabeth shook her head. “No, that’s what I was going for.”

Percy nodded, still examining it. “So what was the inspiration for it? Also your line work and shading both look excellent.”

Annabeth straightened up slightly, and when she spoke her voice was a just a bit smug. “Well, I am an architect, being able to draw clean lines is part of the job.”

Percy shook his head, handing it back to her. “Buildings are all about straight lines, drawing a person is totally different, and you seem to be pretty good at it.”

Annabeth blushed slightly, putting the book away again. “Well, thank you, I appreciate it. But I can’t really take credit for this one. I’m not tracing it, but I saw this somewhere and it’s been stuck in my head ever since. I thought maybe drawing it myself would help.”

Percy leaned back in his chair. “Well, you’re certainly doing a good job.”

Annabeth waved her hand back and forth. She felt a bit flustered under all this praise, and was anxious to change the subject. “Okay, that’s my part of the deal, now spill. What were you thinking about earlier?”

Percy bit his lip anxiously, his hand instinctively going to rub the back of his neck. Annabeth wondered why he looked so uncomfortable. _ It couldn’t be that bad… could it? _

Percy hesitantly began to speak. “Well… I was just thinking about how we first met in a coffee shop. And, how one of the days you were there, you left a little doodle behind on a napkin… of me.”

He spoke very quietly, but Annabeth had no trouble hearing him in the empty cafe. What she did have trouble with, however, was not burying her face in her hands out of embarrassment. As he spoke she could feel her whole face getting hot, and she thought,  _ I could just die right now. _

She had forgotten all about that. So much had happened since then that it seemed like months ago, rather than weeks. 

She wasn’t really sure why she had drawn him. Usually if she isn’t sketching buildings she just does landscapes; very rarely does she draw people, and she hadn’t felt like drawing anything for fun in a while.

It was just something about his eyes, she thought. _It isn’t just the color that reminds me of the sea,_ she realized, _there’s a depth there… a sadness._ _I guess that must have inspired me._

She didn’t voice any of this, however. She didn’t want him to think she hired him because she thought he was cute.  _ Especially _ when he still thought she had a boyfriend.

It was quiet again, a tense energy having settled between the two, and neither of them knew what to say. They sat in painful silence, until another loud clang, followed by some very creative replacements for swear words, from the back room caused them both to jump.

They both looked at each other for a second, then busted out laughing. Neither of them liked laughing at another persons’ misfortune, but they couldn’t help it. All the tension left the room, and as soon as Percy could catch his breath, he stood up, walked over the counter and called out, “Are you alright back there?”

A sheepish, “Yes…” came back in reply, and Percy chuckled.

As he made his way back to his seat, he called over his shoulder, “Be careful, alright? And there’s no need to be embarrassed; I guarantee I make myself look like an idiot more often than you do!”

Annabeth couldn’t make out the response from behind the door, but the guys’ voice sounded embarrassed. She felt bad for him, but she was grateful for the distraction he caused to break the tension between her and Percy. She made a mental note to leave a nice tip for him and his girlfriend.

Percy settled into the chair opposite her and when she looked at him, he seemed amused.

“Anyway, now you know what I was thinking about earlier.” He started to say something else, but then he hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but wasn’t sure if he should.

Annabeth gave him a curious look. “Yes?” she prompted. 

Percy shrugged, but he still seemed anxious. “I was just… wondering why you hired me. I remember that day at your house I was- well, I was pretty weird, I guess, so, I was just curious-“

Annabeth was saved from having to give an answer to a question she didn’t have an answer for when the door to the back room opened and out came the girl from before-  _ Hazel, _ Annabeth remembered- holding a candle, and a large, Asian man with a close shaven crew cut.

Annabeth watched them closely as they came around the counter. The differences between them were almost comical; she was small, he was large, he had light, pale skin versus her dark ebony skin, his hair was straight and short compared to hers which was long and curly. Still, they just looked… right together. He had something of a baby face, and she looked very tender and nurturing. With just one look Annabeth could tell they were very close.

“Hey,” said Hazel shyly. “We thought maybe we would come out and join you. Maybe then my boyfriend, Frank, might not get himself hurt bumping into stuff anymore.”

The big guy ducked his head, embarrassed. Percy laughed.

“Hey man, nothing to be ashamed of there. I wasn’t kidding when I said I’m sure I make more of a fool of myself than you do. You should wait until you hear the story of how I got pantsed at Times Square! That one was a doozy.”

Everyone laughed at that, and Frank seemed to relax some. However, Annabeth noticed Percy blushed when he saw her laughing, and he quickly looked away.

Frank and Hazel pulled up two chairs to the little table and sat down, as the rain outside continued to pour and lightning streaked across the sky.

Annabeth leaned across the table towards Percy, a big smirk on her face. “Well then? Let’s hear it,  _ hero. _ ”


	9. Chapter 9

Everyone stared at Percy, waiting for him to start his story.

“Um,” he blushed. “So…”

Percy embarrassingly recounted the story of how he and his best friend Grover got attacked by a crazed street performer at Times Square, and how at some point during the fight his pants got yanked down to his ankles. 

It was around that time the police showed up. Percy had managed to pull his jeans back up fairly quickly, but they had gotten ripped up in the scuffle and he had to walk home in tatters. Thankfully, this was New York, so either no one noticed or they just didn’t care.

At the end, Annabeth, Frank, and Hazel were nearly in tears. Percy was flushed beet red, and nervously fiddling with his cup of hot chocolate.

“That can’t have really happened,” said Frank between laughs.

Annabeth, who had pulled her phone out just as Percy finished his story, said, “Oh, it happened, alright. I found the news article about it.” She triumphantly showed her phone to the others, while Percy groaned and buried his head in his hands.

_ Ugh, I messed up big time,  _ he thought to himself.  _ I was trying to help Frank loosen up, but now all these people know about the Times Square Incident! _

If it were just him, Frank and Hazel, he probably wouldn’t have cared as much. It was Annabeth he didn’t want hearing embarrassing stories about him. 

She always made him feel flustered. Around most people, he was fine, but when it was just him and Annabeth he quickly lost his ability to think clearly... or at all.

Hazel handed Annabeth back her phone, smiling at Percy. “I can’t believe that actually happened. That’s crazy!”

Percy made a face. “Why do all of you assume I’m a liar? I don’t deserve that.”

Annabeth laughed. “Well, you sort of look like a troublemaker, so maybe we’re all just being cautious.” She winked at him. 

He frowned melodramatically. “You can be a very rude person, you know that?”

She snorted, then covered her mouth in wide eyed embarrassment. Percy and the others laughed, and soon she joined them.

“So,” Percy said, raising his hot chocolate to take a drink, “I’ve shared an embarrassing story; now let’s hear from all of you.”

OoOoOoOoO

No one spoke up immediately, and Annabeth’s mind whirred to life trying to find a distraction. She had no intention of sharing an embarrassing story with these people.

As Percy set his cup back down, Annabeth spotted something that looked like small, black writing on the side of the cup. “Hey, Percy,” she pointed to the small words written there. “What’s that?” Percy turned the cup so it faced him as he read the words aloud.

“‘Percy, the happiest hero~’” Percy looked at Hazel questioningly. “What’s that about?”

Hazel giggled. “Oh, I wrote that. Just a cute little way of personalizing peoples’ orders, you know? I do it for pretty much everyone.”

“Oh, really?” Annabeth said curiously. She turned her cup to the side and made out the word  _ Bananabeth _ . “Huh.” 

Percy raised his eyebrow. “What’s it say,  _ Wise Girl _ ?”

“N-nothing,” Annabeth muttered, cheeks turning a light pink. Then, she gave him an annoyed look. “Really?  _ Wise Girl _ ?”

“What? I heard one of your friends say something like it,” Percy grumbled defensively. “I figured it was just a regular nickname for you, so I thought I’d just- you know- give it a try.”

Annabeth wanted to tell him she didn’t have a regular nickname, nor did she like them, but she let it slide (she wasn’t sure why).

Hazel’s head snapped up, and she smiled at Annabeth. “Annabeth, you’re avoiding telling a story~” Hazel called out.

Annabeth groaned and made a face.  _ Guess there’s no avoiding this... _

They spent who-knows-how-long talking and sharing stories, laughing and having fun. Annabeth didn’t volunteer a lot of information, but she learned about Frank’s love for archery and how Hazel enjoyed horseback riding.

Mostly she learned about Percy though. He carried the conversation with a comfort and ease she wished she could match. He laughed and smiled and joked, entertaining them all with his goofball sense of humor.

Percy seemed to have a big thing for music, though he seemed evasive when asked about it. She could tell from the way he talked about it though that he was clearly passionate about it. He also had lots of funny stories, some about his friends, but most were about himself. He never topped the first one though.

A lot of them came from all the jobs he had worked. Percy had had so many that Annabeth wondered how long he stayed at each. She recalled meeting him at a cafe, then within a week he was delivering her pizza, then the next day he’d submitted an application to her firm. She didn’t have long to dwell on the reasoning behind that though, because about that time Hazel stood up. 

“It’s been a few hours, and I’m kind of hungry,” she said. “Who wants food?“

“I think everyone does,” said Annabeth, Frank and Percy nodding in agreement.

Frank jumped up as well. “Let’s raid the kitchens! Don’t worry, Mr. Brunner won’t mind, as long as we don’t take too much.”

The guys cheered, and Hazel led them to the back where all the food was stored.

It was a decently sized room, with boxes placed sporadically, and shelves stocked with books, cutlery, and other assorted food and drinks.

Annabeth could barely see a few feet in front of her from the dim light of the candle, but Frank and Hazel seemed to know where they were going. Frank and Percy went left, she and Hazel to the right.

Annabeth held the candle while Hazel looked up and down the shelves. 

Annabeth’s phone started ringing. Looking down, she saw the caller ID was Silena. She excused herself and ducked behind a shelf and held the phone up to her year. “Yeah, Silena?” 

“Annabeth,” Silena said urgently. “Luke called me. And he wants to talk to you.” 

Suddenly, it felt like the floor had dropped out from under her. Her mind raced with possibilities (and all the things she wanted to say), but she tried to stay focused on Silena.

Annabeth quickly set the candle on a shelf and turned away from Hazel. “He, what?! What do you mean- why didn’t he call me?!” she whisper-shouted.

“He said it would probably be for the best if you were prepared in advance for the next time you spoke. He wanted to schedule an appointment to meet in person...” Silena trailed off, clearly uncomfortable with her role in this situation.

Annabeth was fuming.  _ He thinks he can break up over text, then tell me that we shouldn’t talk again until we see each other in person?! He thinks he can just schedule an apology meeting with me? And not even with me directly, but through my secretary?!  _

She took a deep breath. “Fine,” she muttered. “Fine, whatever. Tell him I’ll meet him… Monday, I guess.” With mixed feelings and a lot of confusion in her heart, she hung up without another word. 

Hazel peered at her curiously. “What was that about?”

Annabeth pursed her lips. Hazel was nice, but she didn’t really know her… She looked at Hazel, and, seeing genuine concern there, Annabeth’s need to vent won out. She took another deep breath.

“My ex-boyfriend cheated on me, broke up with me, and now wants to meet me again for whatever reason.” Annabeth replied shortly. She sighed, and dragged her hand through her hair.

“Oh,” Hazel said quietly. “Do you think he wants to try and get back together?”

Annabeth shook her head. “I doubt it. Once he’s made a decision, he commits to it.”

Hazel tilted her head slightly, and gently asked, “And what about you, Annabeth? What do you want?”

She stared at the flickering candle. “I don’t... it’s complicated. We were together for a long time, you know? And I know I loved him at one point, but now… I don’t know.” She rubbed her eyes in frustration.

“Annabeth,” Hazel said seriously. “You know Percy likes you, right? As more than just a coworker. As more than just a friend. So… don’t break his heart, ok? I haven’t known him for long, but I can tell he’s a good guy and he doesn’t deserve something like that.”

Annabeth’s face flushed. “I would nev- I mean, I don’t have any feelings toward him, not like that, and I’m certain the feeling is mutual. I’m his boss, that would be wrong. And I’m sure Percy and I will be able to keep a strictly professional relationship.”

Hazel clicked her tongue, and if Annabeth didn’t know any better she’d say she was being pitied. “Hmm. Life’s hard sometimes, don’t you think?”

Before Annabeth could think of a response, something hit the back of her head. She picked it up and saw it was a cookie. “What the-?”

“FOOD FIGHT!!” Percy screamed wildly.

Annabeth immediately ducked, just in time as a chunk of cookie dough came flying in their direction. Hazel caught it, surprised, but another one hit her in the face right after.

Annabeth yelled out, “Are you kidding me?! What are we, childr-“ but she was cut off as another cookie came flying in, smacking her right in the forehead. Her jaw clenched.  _ Oh, it’s on now. _

Percy laughed in the darkness;  _ they put out their candle, _ she realized. “I told you earlier, my inner child will never die!”

Annabeth saw Hazel, now recovered from being hit with cookie dough. Neither of them could believe this, but as they locked eyes they also knew neither were willing to lose. Annabeth nodded, and they broke.

She quickly blew out their candle, then ducked for cover. Hazel grabbed a tray of muffins from a nearby rack and began launching them one by one. Frank ran to the back of the room for cover, using handfuls of powder from a spilt bag as a smoke screen, while Percy ran around the room laughing maniacally and chucking cookies in random directions. 

The four screamed, cheered, and laughed as they were all pelted with food, flour, and something that  _ might  _ have been ice cream two months ago.

OoOoOoOoO

“That was fun!” Frank said happily. They had relit the candles and were all headed back into the main seating area.

Annabeth gave him a look. “Yeah… fun. Something like that.” She picked at some white glob in her hair. “Oh, gross. What even  _ is  _ this?”

Percy sidled up to her. “Let me get that out for you.” Percy tugged on it gently, making sure not to hurt her. As he worked, he took extra time to admire her golden hair (with _ out _ being creepy). It was soft, a  _ teeny  _ bit greasy (workaholic) - not that he minded. 

At all.

“You done?” Annabeth asked, startling him out of his reverie. 

“Oh! Yeah… yeah, I’m done.” Percy stepped away from her, quickly walking back to his seat.

The winds and lightning seemed to have mostly stopped while they were all having fun, but it was still raining heavily outside. Percy didn’t want to head home just yet, and Frank and Hazel agreed they could stay until the rain let up some, since they didn’t have anything better to do. 

“I guess we should just be glad nobody came in while we were messing around in the back,” Annabeth said.

Frank smacked his forehead. “I didn’t even think of that! Whoops.” He looked at Hazel sheepishly.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Well, luckily for us, I did, a few hours ago, actually. I locked the door and switched the sign to say we’re closed.”

“Oh! That was a good idea. I’m glad you’re so much smarter than me,” he said cheerfully. Percy could relate to that; he felt like everyone was smarter than him.

Hazel smiled. “Well, one of us has to be responsible,” she said, winking at Percy and Annabeth. They both laughed. 

Everyone fell into easy conversation after that. Percy tried to mainly focus on Hazel and Frank; if he spent too much time looking at or talking to Annabeth, he started getting awkward again. She seemed to forgive him for hitting her with cookies, at least.

They all exchanged phone numbers, with the exception of Percy and Annabeth, since Percy was too afraid to ask and Annabeth didn’t offer. Hazel looked sort of disappointed at the pair,  _ probably because of the massive mess she has to worry about now, thanks to us, _ Percy thought.

OoOoOoOoO

Hazel sighed. “Okay, let’s go back and check the damage.” The group of four, together, walked into the back storage room, Hazel in the lead.

Even in with the dim light of the candle, Annabeth could tell it was an absolute  _ mess _ . “Oh, gods. Hazel, I’m so sorry-”

“Annabeth.” Hazel interrupted. “Not your fault.” She glared at the two boys in the room, both of whom suddenly found the floor very interesting. “But… me and Frank need to clean this.”

Her brain naturally screamed  _ Frank and I _ , but she said instead, “I-  _ we  _ can help. Right, Percy? We made the mess, we help clean it.”

“No,” Hazel stated firmly. “You’re technically still customers and it’s  _ not  _ your job to clean up after our messes. I’m glad you came and we met you, but the rain has let up enough for you both to go home, so shoo. Out. Go.” 

Frank winced. “You should listen to her. She’s normally really nice, but she’s not gonna let this happen.”

Annabeth wanted to argue that it really was fine,  _ no really, we’re responsible so we should help, _ but one more look from Hazel had her biting her tongue.

Frank led Annabeth and Percy back out into the seating area, told them goodbye and to be safe, and locked the door behind them. As they stood under the store’s small awning, Annabeth pulled out her umbrella. When she turned to say goodbye to Percy, she saw him shifting from one foot to the other, squinting into the downpour. She remembered he didn’t have an umbrella.

He had pulled his hood up and zipped up his jacket, and he seemed to be calculating which path would have him spending as little time in the rain as possible. Annabeth smiled to herself. _It’s cute he thinks I’ll let him do that._

“Hey, Percy,” she said. When he turned to her, she held her umbrella so that it covered both of them. She tilted her head slightly. “Where are you headed?”

Percy blinked, then blushed. “You don’t have to-“ he started, but Annabeth cut him off, waving her hand.

“No, I know I don’t have to, but I’m going to because I think it’s the right thing to do.” Hazel’s knowing look from earlier flashed through her mind.  _ And no other reason. _

Percy still looked uncomfortable, but he nodded and they set off together. Thankfully, they were headed in the same direction, so she didn’t have to go out of her way.

They walked in silence, but the air between them was awkward now. She sensed his tension beside her and pursed her lips.  _ Where did his confidence go? Does he really feel that uncomfortable sharing an umbrella with me? I’m nervous here too, you know. You could try and help me feel less awkward about this. _

As if sensing her thoughts, Percy coughed. “So, uh… that was an unexpectedly long coffee run.”

Annabeth laughed. “Yeah, it was, but I had fun all the same.”

Percy looked at her with a big, goofy lopsided grin on his face. “Yeah, it was.”

They returned to walking quietly, but it was more relaxed than before. Annabeth enjoyed the sound of the rain, and the heat Percy radiated beside her. He began mindlessly humming a tune she hadn’t heard before, but she liked it.

They both held the umbrella, Percy’s hand lightly touching hers. Annabeth felt hyperconscious in that moment, aware of everything that happened around them. The rain had lightened into a slight drizzle, but neither of them seemed to have any inclination towards letting go.

OoOoOoOoO

“We’re here.” Annabeth murmured.

Under the safety of the bus shelter, Percy gave her a half bow. “I suppose this is where we part ways, milady.”

Annabeth bit her cheek to keep from smiling. She gave him a little curtsy. “I’ll see you around, Hero Boy.”

Percy watched her go, darting past puddles and dodging cars, wishing for a moment that she had stayed by his side just a little longer. He began humming the tune she’d inspired in his head again, but this time it took on a more melancholic tone.  _ I wish someday I could be your Hero. _


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...let's pretend I wasn't late

Percy stared out the window as the sights and streets of New York passed him by. He tuned out the sounds of angry drivers and the mindless chatter of passersby. He was deep in his own mind, humming a tune he couldn’t get out of his head.

It had been building in his mind ever since he last saw  _ her. _ Growing more and more defined. He knew soon enough he’d have to put it down, and put lyrics to it after that. Not today though. Today he had to work at his job. As a  _ janitor. _

He hadn’t made music in a long time. He just hadn’t been inspired. Not until he met  _ her. _ And now the music wouldn’t leave his head, not anymore than she would.

The bus jerked to a sudden stop and Percy snapped back to the real world. He quickly looked up and sure enough, his stop.

_ Welp, _ he thought,  _ here we go I guess. _

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth paced anxiously around her office -  _ five more minutes until he gets here _ .

“Beth,” Silena said worriedly, “stop walking so much - you’ll tire yourself out. And wear holes into the floor. Maybe. It’s only  _ one  _ chat - you can do this!” She made a fist-pump motion, but Annabeth wasn’t comforted.

“Silena, I’m just not sure what to do or how this is gonna go. This shouldn’t be happening here, at my work. What if it gets loud, what if it gets ugly? We should’ve scheduled to meet somewhere else. And he should’ve contacted me directly! The fact he went through you pisses me off, the fact he cheated pisses me off, the fact we even have to do this pisses me off! I just-“

Silena stepped in front of Annabeth and cupped her face in her hands. “Breathe. Now. Breathe with me.” She slowly inhaled, held it briefly, and exhaled. Annabeth followed suit, and after several breaths she started to relax.

“Annabeth, you're missing the point here, I think,” Silena said gently. “You’re mad he cheated, and that’s good, that’s the right thing to feel, but there’s more to it than that. What is really hurting you about all this?”

Annabeth continued breathing deeply while Silena waited patiently. Finally, she spoke.

“I just didn’t want this to end. Not like this. Not at all.” Annabeth’s voice shook and she struggled to keep the tears out of her eyes. Silena held her in a good hug for a while.

“You’ll be okay, Beth. I’ll always support you. And so will our friends, our coworkers - even my sneaky little half-sister! But you need to work this out so he doesn’t hold you down anymore. All you need to do is-”

Before Silena could finish her sentence, there were three sharp knocks on the door. Without waiting for an invitation, Luke stepped into the room.

Silena gave him a cold glare, then turned to Annabeth, gave her one last supportive hug, whispered, “You’ve got this,” and strode past him, out of the room.

Luke stayed where he was by the door, his expression polite yet reserved. Annabeth’s face was impassive. After a long minute, he finally spoke.

“Hey.”

_ ‘Hey.’ After everything: ‘Hey.’ What a joke. _

“Hey,” she said back.

“So.” Luke ran a hand through his hair, looking away. “Where do we start?”

_ How about the part where you cheated on me? _

“I don’t know,” Annabeth said coldly. “You’re the one who called this ‘meeting.’”

Luke winced. “Right. Look, I’m not going to pretend I can make amends for anything, and I’m not gonna try to justify what I did. We should’ve settled this a long time ago… but I can’t change the past.

“This has been over for a while, Annabeth. I wanted things to work out, but I knew they wouldn’t, and I think maybe you did too, deep down. But I let you keep trying, because I knew you always wanted something permanent, and I’m sorry I couldn’t be that for you. For what it’s worth, you are still important to me, even now, even if I haven’t always acted like it. And I am truly sorry.”

Annabeth’s thoughts had been racing in her head, all the things she wanted to scream at him, but she stayed silent.

_ If you knew this was over, why didn’t you tell me that? Why did we never talk about it? Because no, Luke, I didn’t know it was over, no matter what you want to tell yourself. Why did you never try, if I was so important to you? Why would you let me waste my time on you if you didn’t care?! Sorry? You’re sorry?! You have the audacity to say you’re sorry to me, after everything?! _

As the silence dragged on, Luke’s expression grew more and more tired. Finally, he asked, “Well? Aren’t you going to say anything?”

There was so much she wanted to say, but Annabeth bit her tongue. She wasn’t sure she could trust herself to not start screaming, and this wasn’t the place for it.

Luke sighed. “I wasn’t sure what I was expecting,” he muttered to himself. Annabeth could nearly feel her anger boiling over, but again, she said nothing.

After another agonizing minute, Luke shook his head. He looked at her with some combination of remorse and sympathy. “Unless you have anything to say, I’m leaving, Annabeth.”

Time passed in silence.

Luke’s eyes were tired, but he nodded to himself, like he expected it. With one last sigh, he said, “I hope someday you can forgive me Annabeth, if not for my sake then for yours. Because I know how long you can hold grudges, and I know the longer you hate me the more this whole thing will hurt you, and I don’t want to be the reason you’re hurting anymore. There will always be a part of me that cares for you, I’m just sorry it’s not the way you wanted.”

He paused with his hand on the door. “Goodbye, Annabeth.”

“Get out,” she whispered.

As the door closed behind him, Annabeth sank to her knees, the tears finally starting to flow.

_ Goodbye, Luke. _

OoOoOoOoO

Percy hurried through the door. The bus had been running late, because of course it was. He glanced at the clock hanging in the lobby. Five minutes late.  _ That isn’t too bad, right? I hope that’s not bad. Oh gosh, please don’t be bad. _

As he passed the front desk, he caught sight of Beckendorf talking to a small girl with short, curly brown hair who Percy had seen in passing. He waved at Beckendorf as he rushed to clock in. Beckendorf didn’t seem to notice, too involved in his conversation with the girl.

Once he had officially started for the day, he walked back up to Beckendorf and the girl. He didn’t want to interrupt, since they seemed so deep in their conversation, both of them smiling and laughing, but Beckendorf also looked a little uncomfortable so Percy thought he’d go help by asking him what they were doing for the day.

“Hey, Beckendorf, how’s it going, man? I’m so sorry I’m late, the bus was running behind, won’t happen again.”  _ Well, hopefully it won’t happen again, _ Percy thought. He doubted he would be so lucky though.

Beckendorf and the mystery girl both looked up, startled. Beckendorf glanced at the clock and then back at Percy. “Uh, I mean it’s six minutes man, no big deal. I didn’t even notice, to be honest.” Percy thought Beckendorf may have been blushing for some reason, but he couldn’t be sure.

Mystery Girl looked at Percy, her head tilted in confusion. “Charlie, who is this?”

Percy’s eyes widened.  _ Nobody _ in the office called Beckendorf by his first name, not even Annabeth, and she owned the place. His eyes shifted to Beckendorf, but he didn’t seem bothered by it for some reason.

“Oh, right, I forgot Percy said he hadn’t met you yet.” He gestured back and forth between them. “Silena, this is Percy, our recently hired janitor, Percy, this is Silena, personal secretary to Annabeth and the general hiring manager.”

“Nice to meet you,” Percy said politely.  _ What’s Beckendorf doing talking to someone so important?  _ he wondered.

Silena gave him a friendly smile. “It’s nice to meet you too, Percy. I have to ask though, who hired you? Normally I take care of hiring anyone other than the actual people doing the architectural work.”

Percy shrugged. “Um, I just submitted an application online and the next day I was told I got the job.”

Silena scrunched her eyebrows. “Really? You weren’t interviewed at all?”

He rubbed his arm. “Nope, I just got a confirmation email asking me to start as soon as possible. I just assumed you guys really needed a new janitor.”

Silena looked at Beckendorf in confusion, who just shrugged. “I thought it was weird too, but he’s a good guy and a good worker. I’ve been showing him how to do some smaller general maintenance for when I’m too busy, and he’s really thrown himself into it, despite having no prior experience.”

Percy smiled gratefully at Beckendorf. He really had been trying his best, so he appreciated the praise, especially in front of upper management. Silena was staring at Percy, really looking at him for the first time. 

Suddenly she blinked several times in quick succession. Then her eyes widened and she gasped, her hand quickly shooting up to her mouth. “Oh! You’re- uh, I mean, I see, okay cool, good, yep. Good.” She nodded to herself, her eyes still appraising him like he was suddenly a different person. Percy was really weirded out.

Beckendorf gave Percy a look like,  _ Do you have any idea what that was about? _ Percy shook his head, just as mystified.

“Well, maybe Annabeth hired you herself,” Beckendorf said. “I figure she’s the only other person with control over who gets hired.”

Percy immediately wished his words were true, but he doubted it. “Why would she bother hiring a janitor? I’m sure she’s way too busy. But, uh, speaking of Annabeth, how is she doing today?”

Beckendorf gave him a look, but then his eyes flashed with understanding, followed quickly by sympathy. Percy wanted to smack himself for being so obvious. He hoped Silena wouldn’t pick up on it.

Unfortunately, based on her expression, he figured she had. Silena giggled giddily. “Oh, Annabeth’s in her office, she’s just… talking to someone. Why do you ask?”

She gave him a knowing look, and Percy groaned internally. He gave her a look that clearly said,  _ Please, please, please don’t say anything. Please. _

Silena was nearly bursting with excitement, but she gave him a slight nod, and he nearly crumpled with relief.  _ Annabeth finding out I have a crush on her is the last thing I need. _

Beckendorf coughed, breaking the tension. “Well, we should probably get to work, eh, Perce? See you around, Silena.”

She smiled at him. “Yes, I’ll see you around, Charlie. And you too, Percy. I’m glad you decided to come work for us.” She gave him another weird look, and he awkwardly waved goodbye.

Once they were out of earshot, Beckendorf asked gruffly, “Do you know her?”

Percy shook his head. “I have never met her before, and I have no idea what that was about. Is she normally that weird?”

Beckendorf scowled. “No, not normally. Anyway, we’re gonna start on the tenth floor today. You can go grab the red toolbox and meet me at the stairs.” And with that he stormed off.

Percy wanted to complain that they should take the elevator since they were going so far up, and why did they need the red one, that one was the heaviest, but he just sighed. Beckendorf seemed like he was in a bad mood, and Percy didn’t want to make it worse, especially after he made him look good earlier.

Percy shook his head.  _ Looks like it’s gonna be one of those days. _

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth stood alone in the elevator, wiping the remaining tears off her face. So far, she hadn’t run into anyone, and she  _ really  _ hoped her luck would hold out.

After about 15 seconds, the elevator stopped.  _ Already?  _ Annabeth thought. Then she glanced at the floor number, which read 10. She groaned.

Annabeth had just enough time to finish wiping her face one last time before the  _ last _ person she wanted to see stepped on. And of course as soon as he saw her, Percy looked sweet and concerned.  _ Why did it have to be him? _ she thought miserably.

He stepped in awkwardly and the doors closed behind him. She kept her eyes focused straight ahead, but she was  _ very _ aware of his presence beside her, and how awful she looked. Hopefully her makeup hadn’t started to run because of her tears.

She could almost feel his stare burning holes into her side, but she ignored him. Annabeth just really hoped Percy would be able to pick up on her cues -  _ not now _ .

“Are you okay?” he asked gently.

_ Are you kidding me? _ she asked herself. Out loud, she said stiffly, “I’m fine. Thanks for asking.”

He looked at her closely, leaning in a bit too much for her comfort. “Are you sure you’re okay? Because you look-”

“I’m  _ fine _ . Just- I’m okay. Just drop it, please,” she snapped at him. She kept her eyes fixed straight ahead, but she could still see him flinch out of the corner of her eye.

“I- I was just trying to help,” he mumbled. “I’m sorry.” Percy sounded so dejected, so genuinely hurt, that guilt started to well up inside Annabeth. She gritted her teeth.  _ This isn’t fair! _

After taking a couple deep breaths in silence, she sighed. “Listen, Percy, it’s not your fault. I just- I just have a lot going on, and I don’t really want to talk about it, okay? I’m sorry.” Despite being difficult for her to say, she did mean it. She watched his reaction.

He nodded slowly, his expression softening. “Okay. Okay, yeah. Sorry for pushing you. I should’ve backed off.”

Annabeth shook her head. “Don’t worry about it, you were just trying to help. And thanks for that. It was very kind of you.”

Percy shrugged, still frowning. “Doesn’t look like I did though.” Then his expression lit up. “Oh, I know! Whenever I’m really sad I like to find something to make me laugh, so here, let me tell you my favorite joke! What’s the difference-“

Just then, the elevator jerked to a sudden halt. Annabeth saw that they were on the 6th floor, but the doors didn’t open. She pressed the, “open door,” button, but nothing happened. She mashed the ground floor, the 5th floor, 6th floor, 7th floor, every floor button. Nothing changed. They were stuck.

She groaned and hung her head in her hands.  _ You want a joke? Here’s a joke; my whole life. _


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am aware this is late, and I'm sorry. this was pre-written, too, so I really have no excuse other than that updates are going to be slowing down, but here, at least, won't stop entirely for a few more chapters

Annabeth had had enough. She was just fed up with this day, this  _ week.  _ So, even though one of her employees, specifically Percy  _ (because of course it was him, who else would it be?),  _ was in the elevator with her, she was just so frustrated she slammed her head into the panel with all the buttons.

The elevator still didn’t move.

“So, uh,” Percy said, wringing his hands uncomfortably. “I’m going to guess that’s… not supposed to happen?”

“No, Percy,” Annabeth snapped, looking back at him. “This is  _ exactly  _ what I wanted to happen today. Yes, let’s have my ex come to my place of work, after having scheduled a meaning with my  _ secretary,  _ instead of talking to me like an adult, to try and justify everything he did, and  _ then, _ when I’m just trying to take the day off to deal with everything, not only does someone else get on the elevator with me but the stupid, miserable, worthless thing breaks down!”

Annabeth huffed in frustration, completely overwhelmed by it all. Percy looked on in some combination of sympathy, fascination and fear. 

After seeing his expression, she sighed, and sunk to the floor. “Sorry. It’s not your fault. I’m just mad, you know?”

He nodded slowly. “I can te- I mean, I can’t blame you.” In spite of herself, she smirked at that.

Percy ran a hand through his hair and sat down beside her, criss-cross-applesauce. Sighing deeply, he said, “Okay, so, look. I know you aren’t exactly happy to see me or have me here or whatever, and I get that, but, ya know, if I can help I’d like to.”

Annabeth grimaced. “It’s not you specifically, so don’t take it personally or anything. Like I said, this is just a bad day.”

He nodded, more to himself than her, with a small smile on his face. “So, is there anything I can do to help?” he asked, turning the full force of his big, sad eyes on her.

_ How sweet. I look like a crazy person throwing a tantrum and he wants to help me. _ She smiled at him tentatively. “You could tell me that joke, I guess.”

He smacked a fist into his open palm. “Oh, right! Okay, ahem,” he raised his fist to his mouth before clearing his throat. Then, holding his head high, he asked, “What’s the difference between a run down bus stop and a lobster with a bra on?”

Annabeth tilted her head slightly, utterly confused. Percy grinned widely at her.

Struggling to hold back his own laughter, he said, “One is a crusty bus station, and the other is a busty crustacean!”

Percy cracked up, and Annabeth gave him a courtesy laugh that turned into full-blown giggling. “That’s horrible, Percy.”

“But it’s funny!” he said.

Annabeth nodded in grudging admittance. “Yeah, it is. A little bit.”

An awkward silence ensued, during which Annabeth sent off a rapid-fire text to Silena.  _ Stuck in an elevator. Get me out ASAP. Thanks. _

The silence dragged on for a few minutes until Percy spoke.

“So, uh,” Percy scratched the back of his neck. “You said… ex-boyfriend? I don’t mean to pry, it’s just- I’m just wondering. You don’t have to tell me, of course, but I just thought I’d ask so-”

She put her hand out to stop his rambling. “It’s fine,” she said, sitting down next to him. “No point in keeping it from you, anyways.”

She took a moment to collect her thoughts.  _ How much should I tell him? Is this weird? It’s probably weird. _ She looked at him, watching her expectantly. She pursed her lips.  _ Too late to back out now. _

“I guess I can start way back. Do you remember that time you delivered pizza to my house?” He nodded, blushing lightly. She couldn’t blame him. She remembered him running out of her home, almost in tears.

“Back then I told you I was having… relationship troubles, and was asking for advice. Well, things had been going poorly for quite a while. Turns out I was trying to save a relationship that my ex had realized was long since gone. I just wish he’d told me about that,” she added, mostly to herself.

Percy nodded along in time with everything she said. “Why was it dying?”

Annabeth grimaced. “He… he cheated on me, you know? I mean, it wasn’t on  _ purpose  _ or anything, it’s just- we’d been drifting for a while, and… I don’t know. Lu-” she stopped herself. “I know he made a mistake. But I still don’t think that makes it okay.”

“It doesn’t,” Percy agreed. He looked thoughtful. “I can tell you still have feelings for him, and I know how hard it is to handle a breakup when you’re hurting but still trying to think positively about someone because you care for them. If you want, you can just talk to me about things. All of it; the good, the bad and the ugly. Just let it out. I promise you can trust me; my lips are sealed.” He made a motion of zipping his lips shut and throwing away the key.

Annabeth looked at him in surprise. She barely knew this man, and yet she could see the genuine earnestness in his eyes. He really wanted to help her, someone that, outside of one instance of spending time together, was a total stranger.

“I mean, are you sure? Because I might talk for a while, and I don’t know if it’ll actually help, and you don’t really know me, and I don’t want to unload my emotional baggage on you, and-“

Percy gently raised a hand to cut her off. “I am sure, we aren’t going anywhere for a while, it will help, trust me on that, I don’t need to know you to care about you and I’m offering my help, you aren’t forcing anything on me. And this isn’t pity, if you’re worried about that; it’s sympathy, and there is a difference. I know how this feels, and if you’ll let me, I want to help.”

Annabeth was so overwhelmed she had to bite her lip to keep it from quivering. No one had  _ ever _ offered to listen to her like that, but he sounded so certain she couldn’t doubt him. 

She wanted to say no, to thank him politely and turn down his offer. She wanted to just keep up her walls and wait for the elevator to start moving again.  _ That would be the right thing to do… right? _

She’d always thought it was selfless of her to not burden people with her problems, but looking at this man in front of her now,  _ Percy, _ she wasn’t so sure anymore. And honestly, even if she was right, today she thought maybe being selfish wasn’t so bad. And so, she began to talk, and he continued to listen.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy didn’t know for sure how long he listened to Annabeth talk about her ex, but he patiently let her get everything out. She talked about why she liked him, how long they’d known each other and been together, his flaws, how angry and betrayed she felt, how she thought it would last forever and it broke some part of her that it hadn’t, and more. He took in every word, and as she spoke more and more about her ex there grew a feeling inside his chest he couldn’t quite identify.

She sighed, using her hands to talk. “...I guess Luke just-”

“Wait,” Percy stopped her, cutting her off for the first time since she started. “Luke?”

Annabeth blinked in surprise. “Well, yeah, that’s his name. I thought I already told you…? I guess not. He’s got blonde hair and blue eyes and-”

Percy’s eyes steeled over, his jaw set. “Yeah,” he said roughly, “we’ve met.”

Annabeth looked shocked. “Oh,” she said in a small voice.

A strange silence fell over the room as Percy closed his eyes and began breathing deeply. He forced himself to uncurl his fists so he could sit on his hands. After several seconds, he opened his eyes to see Annabeth leaned away from him slightly, her expression not having changed. He winced.

“I… I am so sorry about that,” he said apologetically. He looked down as his face burned with shame. He took another deep breath to steady himself. “I’ve had some anger management problems in my past, thanks to my crappy ex step dad, and some crappy teachers, and me constantly having to defend my friends, and being insecure about my disabilities, and having to worry about my mom’s-“ He cut himself off, nearly burning a hole in the floor with his gaze.

His head dropped between his knees, his expression defeated.  _ If there was any doubt about her liking me, now I know for sure. Because now she’s scared of me. _

Percy said quietly, “I had just thought he was a good guy, so to hear about everything, about how he hurt you… it just really pissed me off. I’m sorry for scaring you.” Then he muttered so quietly he hoped she couldn’t hear, “You don’t have to be afraid.”

After a few moments passed, the fear inside him grew to be almost more than he could take, but then he felt a hand begin gently rubbing his back and he heard Annabeth scoot closer to him. When he looked up, her expression was comforting, gentle, and the grey in her eyes looked like solace from the storm.

She smiled at him kindly. “It’s okay,” she said quietly. “I’m not afraid.”

Percy’s breath caught, but she continued. “It caught me off guard to see you so angry for my sake, but I could never imagine you being violent; at least, not unless you were hit first. I trust you, Percy.” Her voice had gotten so soft by the end, Percy almost had a hard time hearing her, but she was sincere.

Then, she added in a much lighter tone, “You know, you remind me of a friend of mine from high school; I actually mentioned her in some of the stories from earlier, Thalia. I haven’t talked to her in a long time,” she said. Then she winked at him, trying to lighten the mood. “Thanks for reminding me.”

Percy took another shaky breath. He was just grateful he hadn’t scared her off. “What happened that prevented you two from talking?”

Annabeth shrugged, though her hand didn’t leave his back. “Different life paths, really. I went to college for architecture, she started a band. They’re actually pretty successful, you may have heard of them. They’re called Half-Blood Hellions, I think.”

“Oh! I’ve heard of them. I only know a few songs, though.” Percy sighed. “I don’t really have much time for music anymore.” 

She sympathetically touched his arm for a moment. “Aww, that sucks. You were into music?”

He closed his eyes. “Yeah. A long time ago. But that’s…” he smiled at her ruefully. “In the past. I don’t have the time now to keep chasing childhood dreams.”

Annabeth bit her cheek, and Percy thought he could almost see her deciding whether or not to be comforting or lighthearted. Eventually she smiled, though her brow was still furrowed.

“I thought you said your inner child would never die,” she said softly. It took Percy a while to come up with a retort.

He shrugged. “I tried, I failed. It didn’t work out, and I don’t have the time or the opportunities to try again. Turns out a big part of being successful is knowing the right people,” he added lightly.

“And you didn’t?” Annabeth asked.

Percy frowned, thinking of his ex girlfriend. “At one time, I thought I had. I thought she could’ve helped me the way I helped her, but that’s just not the way things played out, I guess.” He shrugged again.

Annabeth pursed her lips. After a moment, she nodded to herself. “Okay, you know way too much about me and my problems for me to still know nothing about yours.” She sat down on the floor beside him, but so that she was facing him from the opposite direction. Their legs were touching, and while Percy’s blood started to rush he wasn’t sure if Annabeth even noticed. She stared at him so intently, as if he was some problem she was trying to solve.

“You can trust me too, you know,” she said quietly. Then, she added solemnly, “What happens in the elevator stays in the elevator.”

Percy laughed, and Annabeth smiled.

Percy wrung his hands nervously. “I dated someone back in high school. Before… well, before I dropped out. My mom-” his voice shook slightly. “She wasn’t very healthy at the time. And my girlfriend - well, we were friends at first until one day she asked me out. She said she’d been dropping hints for a while and I’d just… never picked on them.” Percy’s mind flashed back to several years ago.

_ They were walking down the hallways together like they always did, when she suddenly spun on her heel to face him. “Percy,” she smiled. “Wanna go out?” _

_ He blinked, confused. “What?” _

_ “Like,  _ date _ , Perce.” She folded her arms across her chest. “I’ve been dropping hints for a while - don’t tell me you never picked up on anything!” _

_ “Ah…” _

_ “Yes or no, Perce? C’mon, don’t keep me waiting, or I’ll leave you behind!” She skipped past him, sticking her tongue out as she went. _

He smiled softly, reminiscing. “We had a really good run. I loved her, she loved me - at least, I think she did.”  _ Don’t keep me waiting, or I’ll leave you behind…  _ Percy shook his head.  _ I really should’ve listened. _ “But she had all these passions, y’know?” Percy flopped down on the floor, though his legs were still touching Annabeth’s.

“She was an aspiring artist - a really good one, too, and had a lot going for her. She  _ wanted  _ things - things I couldn’t give. I was always busy working so I could pay the hospital bills and stuff and then we had this big fight and she- well, she broke up with me.”

He heard a sharp intake of breath, and when he looked up he realized why people around the office said Annabeth could be scary. He hadn’t believed them before. Now though, with her grey eyes fierce like tornadoes and her whole body tensed in a way that looked almost painful, he understood the fear.

When she spoke, her voice was raw with emotion.

“That’s... really low of her. To leave someone who needed her, who trusted her.” 

Percy realized she probably wasn’t just talking about Rachel anymore. He also noticed Annabeth hadn’t taken a breath since she started talking, so he sat up and lightly put his hands on her shoulders, which were incredibly tense.

“Breathe, Annabeth.” She took a shallow breath. Percy smiled gently. “Breathe deeply, Annabeth. Breathe in and out with me.”

Percy has never really expected he’d be taking anyone, let alone his boss/crush through the breathing exercises he’d been taught a long time ago, but as they held a deep breath he realized he had never really expected anything in his life to go the way it did.

“It’s cute you’d get so offended on my behalf,” he said teasingly between breaths. Percy bit the inside of his cheek, hard.  _ Whoops. I guess I dropped my filter at some point. I need to find that and pick it back up. Maybe she didn’t notice? _

Annabeth didn’t seem flustered, so Percy sighed in relief. He hadn’t moved his hands off her shoulders yet, and he didn’t really feel inclined to do so now. He watched her continue to breathe deeply, and while she had calmed down some, Percy noticed her body never lost its tension. 

“Sorry. I guess I have problems with my anger too,” Annabeth said sheepishly. “It just really bothers me, how could someone be so insensitive, so inconsiderate to how someone is feeling, to leave them when-“

Percy cut her off by leaning forward and squeezing her shoulders gently. “Hey, it’s okay. She wasn’t happy, and she handled the situation gracefully. She said we were leading different lives and maybe we  _ weren’t  _ meant to be together like we’d always planned. I was her inspiration for her art, but we started drifting apart and at some point I stopped being that for her anymore, too.”

He leaned back, deep in thought. “I think her art was her way of showing she loved me, but once that stopped - it was kind of like she stopped loving me. If she ever did,” he added quietly.

Annabeth watched Percy like she found something impressive. “That’s very mature of you, to be able to let all that go.”

Abruptly, Percy laughed, startling her. With a sigh, he looked down at the space between them. “Yeah, well, it took awhile to get here. I definitely didn’t see things this way at the time.”

He absentmindedly began rubbing her shoulders, the way he’d start the massages he’d give his mom, and Annabeth immediately responded, shoulders rocking back and forth with his fingers.

He closed his eyes, and in a gentle voice he added, “Closure will come with time, Annabeth.”

When she didn’t respond, he tentatively looked up to see her reaction. He was worried his words had made her emotional again, which is why he was very surprised when he saw her eyes nearly closed and mouth slightly open, with her head tilting backward and forward with his hands.

As he felt the deep tension under his fingers, his heart welled up with sympathy.  _ She must’ve really needed this massage. _

So, before he could back out, he said, “Hey, I realized you’ve got some really bad tension, and like, um, I’m good at giving massages cause my mom has early onset arthritis, so, uh, if you want I can give you one too. It could help you get better sleep and you’d be less tense and-“

Annabeth held up a hand and saved him from his rambling. “Yes.  _ Please _ .”

He gestured for her to spin around, which she did. Percy stared at her blonde curls, currently put up in a messy bun, taking a deep breath to steady himself.

“Okay,” he said, “here we go.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I realized... should probably respond to comments and stuff... thank people for it, and all... yeah, starting that this chapter
> 
> ACoCP went on hiatus on ffnet but since it's not quite caught up here, I'll keep uploading until we're out of pre-written chapters
> 
> posting schedule's still gonna be pretty off, though. 
> 
> um... there was other stuff I needed to say, but I forgot, so that's it for now!

_ If you had asked me what I thought Heaven was this morning, I would not have answered with, ‘getting the greatest massage of my life from my janitor while trapped in an elevator together,’ but here we are. _

Percy wasn’t kidding before- he definitely knew what he was doing. Whoever his ex had been didn’t know what they were missing. It was almost enough for Annabeth to pity them. Almost. 

“So… do you like it,” Percy asked nervously.

Annabeth had meant to give a more composed response, but all that came out was a deeply contented, “Mmmm.”

They sat in silence for a while, and for the first time it didn’t feel awkward. At least, Annabeth was too far gone to notice if it was.

Still, she was confident something had changed between them today. Their relationship was different now, for better or worse. She had trusted him with things she hadn’t told anyone but Silena about, despite barely knowing him.

She got the feeling Percy just had that effect on people though. She wondered how often he had total strangers giving him their sob stories or confessing their greatest mistakes and deepest regrets. 

Annabeth subtly leaned into his touch because this massage felt  _ really good _ . “Why aren’t you a masseuse? You’re  _ way  _ better than the one at the mall.”

Percy’s hands stilled for a heartbeat, but resumed movement as if nothing had happened. 

“Uh, I’ve never really thought about it, I guess. Plus I think you need to get certified or something?” She could feel him shrug behind her.

“You should still look into it, I think you’d do well,” she said, tilting her head back.

He shrugged again. “Maybe, if it’s cheap enough. I don’t have a lot of extra money right now.”

Annabeth’s eyes shot open. The way he said it, so matter-of-factly, made her remember not everyone lived off a six figure salary  _ and _ comes from wealth.  _ He’s working as a janitor, of course he doesn’t have extra money. _

She felt guilty;  _ hopefully he doesn’t feel embarrassed. _ His hands never hesitated or changed pressure though, so she assumed he was alright. She wondered if he’d just accepted that was what his life was, and frowned.

“You alright?” Percy asked tentatively. “You’re tensing up again.”

“Oh, I’m fine,” Annabeth said dismissively, “just thinking about some things I need to take care of.”

Percy began being more firm, and Annabeth nearly forgot what they were talking about. “Okay, well for now how about you stop worrying about whatever it is, okay? Just try and relax. I figure we won’t be doing this again, and I’d hate to think you’re paying for subpar massages,” he said jokingly, though he sounded a little nervous.

“We could,” Annabeth blurted before she could stop herself. She blamed her openness on how good she was feeling, but his hands immediately froze in place. She felt tension start to build inside her again, and embarrassment.

“I mean, um,” Annabeth cleared her throat. “I mean that I could hire you as my personal masseuse. That way you’d have some extra money to do whatever you want with and I wouldn’t be paying for subpar massages.”

_ What am I doing? _ Annabeth was glad Percy couldn’t see her face, because she was sure it was bright red.  _ Is this even okay? Is this sexual harassment? Oh my gosh, what am I even doing?! _

Percy cleared his throat behind her. “Um,” he said quietly, “if you’re serious… I’d be okay with that.”

Annabeth sat up straight, still not looking back at him. “Of course I’m serious, I offered. I’ll pay you, and I’ll hire a tutor to help you get your diploma,” she said, becoming more sure of herself.

Percy’s hands left her shoulders. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, I can’t let you do that,” he said.

She finally spun around to look at him, his face still tinged red like she was sure hers was. “You can’t stop me from doing that. And Chase Enterprises prides itself on taking care of its employees, including helping them through education. Even if you turn down the personal masseuse offer, I’m hiring you a tutor.”

Percy opened his mouth to object, but Annabeth glared at him in a way that made him reconsider. Inwardly, Annabeth grinned.

Percy frowned. “I said I would do the massage thing, but at least let the tutor be my payment for that. I wouldn’t feel right if you paid me for two jobs and a tutor.”

Annabeth tapped her mouth with her finger, pretending to think about it. “That seems fair… but I insist,” she said grinning.

Percy looked like he wanted to argue again, but wisely didn’t say anything. Annabeth smirked. She always won arguments she really cared about. And of course she cared about this one - as the CEO, it was her job to take care of her employees.

“Thanks,” he murmured softly, almost too quietly for her to hear. “Anna- Ms. Chase.”

“You can call me Annabeth at work, too,” she blurted out, cheeks flushing. “Since we’re, you know, friends and all now.”

Percy bit his lip, smiling tentatively. “Thank you, Annabeth.”

OoOoOoOoO

Percy wondered if Annabeth could feel the heat on his face through his hands  _ (which were currently giving her a shoulder massage, oh gods) _ .

He couldn’t believe his luck. Friendship! Progress! In their… work relationship!

_ Focus, Percy _ , he reprimanded himself.  _ You have got to give her the best massage of her whole life. She’s paying me more than she needs to, so I have to do really, really well. _

They’d settled back into silence, but Percy felt wired now. He had a way of earning more money, finishing his education  _ and _ spending time with Annabeth. Percy would praise the god of faulty elevators, if he ever found one.

“I hope you weren’t in a rush to go somewhere today,” Percy added conversationally.

Annabeth waved her hand dismissively. “I was actually going to leave early for the day, and I texted Silena when the elevator first shut down, so I imagine she’s called the people to come out and repair it.”

Percy was glad she couldn’t see him frown. He  _ liked _ being trapped in an elevator with her. He sighed.  _ All good things must come to an end, I guess. _

At that moment, something Annabeth said clicked in his brain, and he groaned, burying his face in his hands. “Oh man, Beckendorf’s gonna kill me.”

Annabeth spun around. “Don’t worry, you have a good excuse. If he gives you any trouble I’ll talk to him.”

Percy looked up at Annabeth’s amused face. “Well, I forgot to tell him why I never came back with the tool he needed, and he was already in a bad mood today. I was supposed to be working with him most of the day today, and now I bet he thinks I just left early.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Annabeth said, rubbing his arm. “It’s not like you really had a choice. I’ll shoot Silena a quick text to tell Beckendorf you're trapped with me.” Annabeth paused, as if remembering something. “But honestly, he probably got told the elevator was broken and figured out you were stuck.”

Percy frowned. “I just don’t like letting people down, ya know?”

The way she stared into his eyes, Percy could tell she knew. He figured that was something they had in common, though he wondered how she could ever let someone down.

“Well, for now don’t worry about it. It’ll be okay,” she said kindly. Then, without warning she spun back around, sitting closer to him than she had before.

Percy froze, unsure whether to scoot closer or move away.  _ Okay, no, this is fine. I’ve thrown food at her. Things could be worse. _

Annabeth yawned. “Gods, I’m exhausted. Mind if I lay down a little bit?”

“Uhh, sure.” Percy was confused as to why she needed his permission but if that was what she-  _ oh gods.  _ She leaned her head on his shoulder and despite his sudden hyper-awareness, he felt nothing more than a featherlight touch.

“Don’t worry,” she yawned, “I won’t sleep. Just need to… rest for a bit. Been an exhausting week. You sure it’s okay with you?”

Percy made a noise that could’ve been a denial or agreement; he wasn’t sure either.

Annabeth sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. Percy stared at her face in a way that was  _ definitely not creepy _ , admiring the way her face softened so much when she was relaxed.

It was very different from how he’d ever seen her (besides the coffee shop, but it was dark and it didn’t really count).

After several minutes, despite what Annabeth said, she was asleep. Percy could tell from the rise and fall of her chest, the way her lips were parted slightly to huff out small breaths, and the way she seemed to have melted into him.

As he stared he couldn’t help thinking to himself,  _ man, I could get used to this. _

OoOoOoOoO

Percy’s legs were sore. Annabeth hadn’t been sleeping for  _ that  _ long, but they had been stuck in an elevator together for a while.

He gently leaned Annabeth against the wall so he could stand up and stretch his legs. “Gods,” he muttered, “this would be a  _ great  _ time for the Beckendorf to fix the elevator… if he’s realized it’s not functioning, that is.”

Spotting Annabeth’s phone on the floor, he grabbed it and checked the lock screen for any text notifications - she had said she’d sent one to Silena. 

_ Nothing. _

Percy groaned and put his hand to his head. He put the phone back to where it was before, dropping back down next to Annabeth.

He sighed to himself. “Looks like we’re gonna be stuck here for a bit longer, Wise Girl.”

The, ‘Wise Girl,’ in question stirred in her sleep, reaching out to him. As she clutched onto his arm, Percy’s heart fluttered.

_ Okay, maybe being stuck here isn’t such a bad thing. It could definitely be worse. _

Her grip on his arm tightened. “Why?” Annabeth mumbled. Percy jumped, thinking he’d woken her, but her eyes remained closed.

Annabeth stirred. “How could you do this to me, Luke? I trusted you…”

Percy tensed, his mood darkening.  _ Luke,  _ he thought venomously.

At first he’d thought Luke was a decent guy, even if he’d made some mistakes. Percy had even liked him, but after hearing about how he’d hurt Annabeth, how he’d led her on and let her down, he couldn’t help but be furious on her behalf.

He could feel a storm brewing inside him, wild and violent.  _ Calm down.  _ He took some deep breaths, fists still tightly clenched.

Annabeth groaned, still restless in her dreams. She pulled herself closer to him. Percy tensed.

As she buried herself into his side, her expression cleared. She sighed.

Percy waited, but she didn’t say anything else. Eventually he began to relax, leaning back against the wall as well. Her breathing was soft, and he enjoyed the sound of it.

Still breathing deeply, Percy closed his eyes. Despite Annabeth’s proximity, he still began to feel tired; it had been an emotionally draining day. Before he knew it, he began to drift off alongside her.

OoOoOoOoO

Slowly, Annabeth came into consciousness. She was snuggled up to someone warm, and though her position was uncomfortable, she still felt peaceful.

Then she began to remember her day and where she was, which meant there was only one person this could be…

Annabeth’s eyes shot open, and her fears were confirmed. Percy’s gently sleeping face was mere inches from hers. She would’ve enjoyed the view if she hadn’t been so startled.

She shot up, and the sudden motion woke him up too. He leaned forward, looking dazed, like he’d forgotten where he was.

“Wha- where?” he asked, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His hair was sticking up in the back from where it met the wall.

“Still stuck in the elevator with me,” she said. She smiled apologetically. “It looks like we both needed some sleep.”

Percy grimaced, rubbing the stiffness out of his neck. “Yeah, sorry about that. My legs were getting stiff, so I had to move us around, and then you hugged me and I just kinda drifted off…” Percy was blushing, and Annabeth liked the way the red complimented the green of his eyes. Then she literally shook that thought out of her head.  _ Inappropriate. _

“It’s okay, we both needed it. And usually I’m not clingy when I sleep, so sorry about that.” She laughed nervously, looking away. She spotted her phone, looking to see how long they’d been asleep.

_ Whoa.  _ It had been  _ a few hours. _ Silena responded just over an hour after her initial text , and had left several messages since.

_ Oh my gosh, I’m soooooo sorry, I just saw this I’ve been talking to someone I’m so so sorry let me call right now _

_ Hello Annabeth please forgive me they said they could send someone out today but it would take a while for them to get here _

_ Are you okay???? Hello?? Answer me!!! _

_ Annabeth I’m sorry please forgive me! _

_ They said someone is on the way now!!! _

_ Okay the guy just got here he says it’ll take him a while to fix it. Again so sorry. Please don’t be dead _

_ Should be fixed soon!!!!! _

The most recent text was from about 15 minutes ago. She smiled at her friend’s obvious panic and quickly typed out a response.

_ Okay, cool. Thank you, Silena. And I’m not dead, don’t worry. Just fell asleep :) _

As she typed, she said to Percy, “Well, looks like we woke up at a good time; Silena says the elevator should be fixed any minute.” She stretched and stood up.

Percy rolled his shoulders, groaning as he did so. “Who knew sleeping in an elevator was so uncomfortable?” he grumbled.

Annabeth smiled, reaching out a hand. “Quit complaining, I slept in here too and I feel fine.”

Percy took it gratefully, standing up alongside her, closer than she’d anticipated. “I wonder why that is?”

Annabeth looked down, a slight tint to her cheeks. Butterflies fluttered, though his voice betrayed his innocence; she could tell he wasn’t flirting, he was genuinely curious. She wondered if that affected her more than if he was.

Suddenly the elevator jolted, shaking them both off balance. She stumbled into him, causing him to fall back against the wall as he grabbed her arms to keep her from completely falling over. Just as they met each other’s eyes, the doors opened.

There stood Silena with the maintenance guy-  _ Beckendorf, right?  _ She wondered if that was who Silena was talking to.

“Beth!” Silena squealed, scooping her up into a hug. “Oh, thank goodness, I thought you might’ve tried to do some weird smart thing and climbed through the vents like an amateur ninja!”

Annabeth stared sternly down at her. “Yeah, why didn’t I? And I would’ve thought I’d at least be middle-level ninja, no?”

Percy detached himself from her slowly -  _ very  _ slowly. “I think Annabeth would make a  _ great  _ ninja.”

Silena’s eyes glinted. “Oh? Annabeth?”

“Um,” Percy scratched his head, which Annabeth was coming to realize was a nervous habit. “Is it against office policy or something?”

“No…” Beckendorf talked for the first time, drawing out the monosyllabic word. “Not necessarily.”

Percy sighed in relief. “Well, that’s good.”

Annabeth side-eyed Silena and just  _ knew  _ she’d be subjected to some weird girl talk later.  _ No,  _ she mouthed, shaking her head.

Silena just winked. “C’mon, Beth, let’s leave the guys to their thing.  _ We  _ need to have a talk.”

“Ugh,” was all Annabeth could manage before she was dragged away.

“Uh, well, bye then!” Percy called out, waving awkwardly. “It was nice being trapped in an elevator with you. I mean, it wasn’t nice being trapped, but we had a good time, well I did at least. Anyway, I’m going to stop talking now.”

She fought a smile. “I know what you mean, and thanks for making the time in there bearable. See you around, Percy.”

He smiled broadly. “Yeah. Catch ya later.”

Annabeth winked.  _ Looking forward to it. _


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...forgot to update in a while. yes, i am a terrible author. in my defense, i have put it on hiatus on ffnet so posting schedule is now extremely unreliable

Annabeth felt like she was being kidnapped. By her best friend. Silena kept dragging her everywhere, with an iron grip on her arm. 

“Silena,” she groaned, “don’t you think this is a little excessive? I mean it was only few hours-”

Silena giggled. For possibly the twelfth time in the past ten minutes. “Oh, Beth. My poor, oblivious genius-nerd. It wasn’t  _ just _ a few hours. You  _ winked  _ at him after - don’t deny it, I saw it - and he even calls you Annabeth now!”

“So?” Annabeth grumped. “Tons of people call me Annabeth. And I didn’t  _ mean  _ to wink, it was-” she blushed “-something in my eye.”

Her best friend cooed. “Was it looove?”

Annabeth shoved her. “No!”

Silena snickered again. “C’mon, let’s go to your house!”

Annabeth blinked as she was pulled out the door of her building and toward her car. “Whoa, that’s my decision, don’t you think?”

Silena was undeterred. “Oh, come one, you were already on your way to leave and we both know it. As your best friend, I can’t leave you alone in your time of need!” she said cheerfully.

She all but shoved Annabeth into her car. “I will meet you there with lots of ice cream and chocolate, then we’re going to put on some sappy romcoms on Netflix and talk about our feelings and cry together. It’ll be great!” She beamed at Annabeth, as if they were discussing Silena’s holiday vacation rather than her breakup (and her newest employee).

Annabeth knew Silena did want to look out for her as a friend, but suspected she knew what she was really after. She sighed.

“Well, I can't wait to hear all about how well things are going between you and that guy in there- what was his name?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

Immediately, the smile dropped from Silena’s face. “Charlie and I aren’t-“ but Annabeth cut her off by slamming the car door and starting her car.

“What was that?” she yelled through the window. “I can’t hear you!”

As she quickly put it in reverse and pulled away, she heard Silena shout, “I’m calling Piper to come over too!” Annabeth glared as she drove away.

_ Oh goody,  _ she thought,  _ another person who can get in my business. _

As she thought about what her business was, she remembered something she’d said to her  favorite green eyed employee. She quite liked Piper and needed to talk to her anyways, so maybe having her over wouldn’t be  _ that  _ bad of a thing.

Well, so she hoped, anyway.

OoOoOoOoO

The two walked to - Percy wasn’t actually sure where - with an unsettling silence hanging over them. 

_ Is he mad I got stuck in the elevator?  _ Percy wondered.  _ And- shoot, Annabeth already left. _

Percy wrung his hands nervously. “Hey man, sorry I got trapped in there, I-“

Beckendorf stopped walking abruptly. “Sorry?” he cut him off, his eyebrows knitting together.

Percy grimaced. “Yeah. I know you were having a bad day, and I couldn’t contact you myself since I don’t have your number, so I just worried-“

Beckendorf’s large hand clapped down on Percy’s shoulder. “Percy, I’m not upset.” His grinned broadly. “I’m  _ happy _ for you, man! I saw how close you two were in there,” he said, a knowing look in his eye.

Percy flushed. “It’s not like that with us,” he mumbled, turning away.

Beckendorf chuckled. “ _ Us, _ ” he repeated. Percy hung his head in his hands. Beckendorf laughed.

Rubbing his hands together, he said, “Alright, we may have lost a lot of time today, but that’s okay, some other important things got done.”

Percy groaned, but Beckendorf ignored him. “However let's make the most of what’s left of today to get some work done,” he said, leading the way off. Percy started behind him.

“You seem like you're in a much better mood than this morning,” he noted. “Did talking with Silena help?”

Beckendorf coughed. “What?” he grunted out.

“You were standing with Silena when the doors opened. I figured you were talking about whatever was on your mind, since you seem happier now,” said Percy.

Beckendorf cleared his throat. “Yeah, that’s it. Anyway…” He walked quickly to the stairs, and Percy had to power walk to keep up.

_ Oh great,  _ he thought,  _ what have I done now? _

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth sighed the moment her doorbell rang. “Perfect timing,” she muttered under her breath. “The door’s open!” She shouted.

The door wiggled slightly. “No, it’s not, Beth! I know you!” The door moved more forcefully. “Annabeth Chase! I swear-”

She heard a sigh. “Move, ‘Lena. I’ll do it.” And then, softer, “gods, who can’t open a  _ door _ ?”

The doorknob twisted and the door swung open.

Silena stood there in all her tiny glory, with an exasperated Piper behind her.

“Beth!” Silena squealed at the same time Piper said, “sorry about her.”

“Hi, you two.” Annabeth said wearily. “Come on in, I guess.”

Silena, as always, made a beeline for the kitchen. “I’m getting the ice cream!” She called out over her shoulder. 

“Didn’t you say you were going to be bringing ice cream?” Annabeth yelled after her.

“Got lazy! Besides, there’s already tons in your house.” 

Annabeth accepted her answer and turned back to Piper, who was standing awkwardly in the doorway. “Um. Heard about your… problem. I’m sorry.”

Annabeth shrugged. “Don’t bother dancing around it. Silena’s going to make me talk about it either way. And,” she heaved a sigh, “I suppose releasing my emotions is better than locking them up.”

Piper gave her a nod and stepped into her house.

“Talky-feelings-y time!” Silena practically skipped in, holding three cartons of ice cream and balancing the TV remote on top of the pile. “Beth, you-”

“I don’t see the point of putting on romcoms if we’re not actually going to watch them.” Annabeth interrupted. “And isn’t that a little too much ice cream?”

Silena pouted. “It’s for the background drama, Beth. It’s funny, too! And besides, there’s  _ never  _ enough ice cream!”

“‘Lena’s not wrong, for once,” Piper said, grabbing one of the cartons. “About the ice cream, at least. Oh, but wow, this is a lot. Annabeth, why do you have all of this in your house?”

Annabeth shrugged. “Silena comes over a lot and always brings some bribery food. They all mostly just… sit in my house, I guess. I don’t go through my fridge much.”

Piper frowned. “Then how do you eat?”

She waved her hand vaguely. “I just order take-out. It’s a lot more convenient and tastes better than anything I could make.”

“But that’s so unhealthy!” Piper protested. “You need  _ real food _ .”

Silena patted her arm. “Don’t worry, Pipes, I bring her homemade food a lot, too.”

Annabeth decided it was not the best time to tell Silena about all the food in her trash can. She grimaced internally.  _ Sorry, Silena.  _

Piper’s eyes widened in horror. “You can’t feed Annabeth that poison! You can barely even  _ cook _ ! It’d be better if she just ate takeout!”

Silena scowled. “Annabeth loves my food! Right, Beth?”

“Uh.” Annabeth felt both pairs of eyes turn to her. “Sure.” Silena took the bait, but Piper wasn’t fooled. She and Annabeth exchanged a look.

“By the way, Piper,” Silena said slyly, “taken your new boyfriend out to eat anytime recently?” That was Silena's signature playful yet dangerous tone that she used to make people do what she wanted. Annabeth wondered what she was up to.

Piper responded with the same coy smile. “Absolutely. As a matter of fact, I’ve decided you get to meet my mysterious boyfriend at last.”

Silena laughed airily. “Oh, Pipes. I’ve already met him. Isn’t he such a darling?”

Annabeth felt the tension in the air.  _ I can almost taste the passive aggression,  _ she thought, biting into another spoonful of ice cream.

Shock splashed across Piper’s face for a second before she recollected her composure. “Yes, he is. I’m rather lucky to have him, right? What do you think about him?” 

Silena paused thoughtfully, tapping her chin with her index finger. “Well, he looks  _ really  _ good in those glasses, that’s for sure. Didn’t know you were into blondes, though, Pipes.”

Annabeth felt the levels of tension go up. She ate another scoop of ice cream.

“Yes, well,” Piper somehow made those two words sound like an insult and a death wish. “I didn’t think so either, until I met him. What about  _ you _ , Silena? Anyone new in your life?”

_ Maybe we really do need all this ice cream _ , Annabeth thought as Silena and Piper subtly tried to eat bigger spoonfuls of ice cream than each other.

_ This is definitely funnier than any romcom. _

“Oh, what about the maintenance guy- Beckendorf?” Annabeth blurted before she could stop herself. The two turned to stare at her. She added, “You were with him when you came to rescue me from the elevator today!” 

Piper’s eyes glinted. “Oh, really, Annabeth? Do tell.”

“Ah.” Silena glared at her. “Um.”

“There is nothing going on between me and Charlie.” Silena said smoothly. “As the maintenance man, it is his job to repair the elevator and I happened to be there since it was Annabeth that was stuck.”

Piper smirked. “My, my, Silena, I’m not sure I believe you. Isn’t romance against company policy?”

Silena snorted, somehow making that sound smug and condescending. “Piper, darling, tell me, since when have  _ you  _ cared about the rules? I’m not breaking any rules, I was just… appreciating finer features.”

Piper laughed dryly. “Ah, that does sound like something you would do, Silena.”

Annabeth decided keeping this going was not only entertaining, but also her best bet for keeping the conversation away from herself.

She took another spoonful, and innocently asked, “But Silena, I thought you had to call out a specific maintenance person for the elevators? Since you said in the text messages they had to send him out and it’d take a while for them to get there, whereas Beckendorf works at our building. That means he’s there all the time,” she added helpfully.

Piper was holding back laughter while Silena shot Annabeth a glare so strong, she could almost hear Silena saying the word  _ traitor. _

“Well,” Silena started, “as I said, Charlie is the maintenance man, and so he handles repairs. However, while he told me he could fix the elevator, it would void the warranty unless one of the company’s own technicians came out to fix it, which is why I needed to call someone else out.”

“So why was he with you then?” Piper asked smugly.

Silena smiled, but in a way that reminded Annabeth of a predator about to lunge at prey it knows can’t escape. “Well, we have a janitor who was also trapped in the elevator with Annabeth,” she said, shooting her a look.

“They were supposed to be working together today, so Charlie was simply waiting for him as I was waiting for you.”

Before Silena could begin questioning her, Annabeth blurted out, “But Percy never got the chance to tell him he was trapped, and I didn’t mention him to you, so how would he have known?”

Silena’s casual poker face remained intact. “He had told me just that morning how much he admired Percy, how dependable and hardworking he was, and so he didn’t think Percy just left for the day without saying anything. ‘Percy is a good guy, he would never leave someone in need,’ he said.”

Annabeth doubted those were his exact words, but Silena was clearly having fun now.

“So-” she continued, but Annabeth cut her off, eyes widening suddenly.

“You call him Charlie,” she said in shock. “Nobody calls him Charlie, not even me.”

Silena stopped short, while Piper lit up in amusement. “Ohhh, how  _ interesting,” _ she said, undisguised gloating in her voice, like she was winning some private contest between the two.

Silena ground her teeth. “Yes, well, that’s not important right now, because,” she rushed to get her words out before Annabeth or Piper could tease her again, “we were talking about what a loyal friend and companion Percy was, and how he would never betray someone by leaving them.”

Her words had the intended effect; Annabeth sat back, hit with the real implications of her words, even if she was sure Beckendorf never actually said them. Silena continued.

“Knowing that, together we deduced he must have been trapped in the elevator with you, for the last  _ few hours. _ Oh, and speaking of that, are you okay? What happened in there?” Silena feigned concern.

Annabeth, having thoroughly lost control now, made one last attempt. “Deduced. That’s a big word for you.”

Silena dropped the facade, a scowl on her face. “Cut the crap, Chase, we want details. No more stalling,” she added sternly.

She sighed. There was obviously no getting out of this now. “Nothing much. We just… talked a little bit. You know, ‘how are you settling into your new job?’ That kinda stuff.”

Silena scoffed, waving her hand. “Oh, puh-lease, Beth, darling. Afterwards, you let him call you  _ Annabeth _ . There is no way that would’ve happened if you just made small talk about how he’s adjusting or something.”

“I hate to burst your bubble, but that’s  _ exactly  _ what happened,” Annabeth lied through her teeth. “And me letting an employee call me by my first name isn’t exactly grounds for an interrogation.”

Silena smirked, clearly amused. “No, it wouldn’t be, if it weren’t for the fact most people in the office call you Ms. Chase out of fear, and you don’t insist on any of them calling you Annabeth,” she pointed out, eyebrow raised.

Annabeth had to work not to grind her teeth in frustration.  _ Why won’t Silena let this go? I’m making friends with an employee, so what? _

As if reading her mind, Silena said, “Annabeth, sweetheart, you don’t talk to anyone at the office about anything other than business, besides me and maybe Malcolm. Even if you were trapped in an elevator together for hours, you’d normally just get on your phone and send emails or something boring like that. You didn’t do that though, I know because you ignored me. You two just talked, for  _ hours~ _ ”

“No, we didn’t,” Annabeth scowled, irritated. “We talked for a while and then fell asleep at some point. I told you that, remember?”

Piper, who had been quiet up until that moment, chimed in. “Wait, you two fell asleep together?” she asked in surprise.

Silena shot out of her chair. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I forgot about that! Beth,  _ you slept next to someone you’ve known for less than two weeks! _ It took me forever to convince you to have a slumber party with me, and I’ve known you for years!”

Annabeth flushed in embarrassment. “That’s because slumber parties are childish, it wasn’t like I didn’t trust you. And Percy is a good guy, I knew I didn’t have to worry about anything, and besides, it was an accident anyway, I just dozed off and so did he.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” said Piper, holding up a hand. “You fell asleep first? On accident, with a guy you barely know?”

“It's not like my time in the elevator with him was the first time we’ve talked,” she exclaimed, getting increasingly exasperated. “We got caught in a cafe together during that bad storm over the weekend, and we talked and had fun for nearly the whole day then.”

Silena looked stunned. “Beth, you’ve spent time with him outside of the office. You even said you had fun. It takes a miracle for you to hang out with me outside of work.”

Annabeth felt a large pang of guilt. Silena hid it well, but she knew she didn’t make enough time for her friend.

“It wasn’t like I had a choice; the power went out, and the storm was way too nasty to go outside, so the baristas who worked there let us hang out and spent the day with us.” She remembered Hazel’s words about Percy and his feelings about her. She shook her head.

“I’ll take you out there sometime,” she added. “The couple that works there are around our age, you’d both like them. Hazel and her boyfriend. Anyway, we can go sometime this week, my treat.”

Silena looked mollified, and Piper was thoughtful. “What did you both do there?” she asked.

“Well,” Annabeth started, “all of us mainly shared stories. Percy has had some very funny experiences.” She smiled to herself, remembering all the stories he’d told about getting pantsed in public and getting run out of a sculptors shop for accidentally breaking some stone statue of some half man, half goat creature.

After a moment, Piper prompted, “Anything else?”

Annabeth grabbed another spoonful of ice cream while she thought.  _ Well, there was a food fight, and we shared an umbrella on the way out. _

“No, nothing else really worth mentioning.” Neither girl looked convinced. Annabeth was getting sick of how perceptive they were.

“Beth, you trusted this guy enough to fall asleep in a secluded area with him, with no one else around, and you’ve only talked with him twice,” Silena said, and she probably would’ve continued if Annabeth had let her.

“ _ Percy  _ is a good guy. I’m very careful about who I trust, Silena. I’m sure he didn’t do anything. I know that he wouldn’t,” she barked out.

Piper raised her hands in a placating manner. “I’m sure that’s not what Lena was implying. If you trust him, then I’m sure he’s worth trusting. I think she just meant you’ve come to trust him pretty quickly.”

“Yes, that’s all I meant,” she said quietly. “And that’s my whole point, Beth.”

Silena set down her spoon and placed her hand gently on Annabeth’s. “You’ve always been slow to trust people, and given… recent circumstances, it would make sense for that to be even more true now. However, not only do you trust this new guy after a matter of days spent together, you even remember his name.” She raised an eyebrow at her. “We both know you’re terrible with names, darling.”

Annabeth blinked. “Well, I’ve been working on that,” she mumbled.

Silena gave her a pointed look. “And was there any reason you started to do that specifically? For  _ anyone _ in particular?”

She shook her head. “I don’t like what you are implying, Silena. He works for me, and romance is strictly against company policy.”

“A policy you made,” she retorted, “and one that, as the boss, you can change freely.”

“No, I don’t have time for romance. It’s not a priority anymore; not after Luke.” Annabeth sounded more resolute than she felt.

Piper quirked her head, but Silena answered for her. “Ex-boyfriend. The one who she had a meeting with today, actually, which presumably didn’t go well since she was on her way out when the elevator broke down. Yet, she doesn’t look sad at all now, does she?”

Annabeth pursed her lips. She struggled to come up with a response to their knowing gazes.

“I talked about things with him while we were waiting. He opened up to me too, and he’s had a hard enough life that it helped put things into perspective for me.” She glanced at Piper, making a mental note to set up their tutoring lessons before she left today.

Piper smiled. “I’m sure it’s hard to accept because you’re coming out of a bad relationship, but it’s okay to have feelings for someone else. Lena had told me you were going through a bad breakup, but she never gave specifics,” she added quickly.

Annabeth nodded. That was one thing she’d always respected about Silena; as much as she loved to gossip, when it came to the stuff that mattered, she was trustworthy to a fault.

Piper continued. “But it’s clear you trust this guy, Percy. He means something to you; you can see that, right?”

When Annabeth didn’t say anything, she smiled kindly at her. “Just think about it for a minute.”

She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead, biting her lip hard.

She remembered all his smiles, the shy ones, the awkward ones, the crinkles that formed around his sea green eyes. She remembered all the times she’d seen the sadness in those eyes, before knowing the causes for it. She thought of all the ways she had seen him be kind and considerate, to her and to others. She scowled in frustration.

_ How is he so happy, so kind, despite everything he’s gone through?  _

She took a few deep breaths, then sighed. “He’s been through so much, definitely more than me, but he’s handled it way better than I have. Despite having every reason to be angry and jaded, he’s caring and understanding. He used to be angry about things, but he wanted to be better so he worked on improving himself as a person.”

_ And I just wish I had that same strength,  _ she thought, shutting her eyes tight.

It was quiet for some time, before she felt Silena’s hand rubbing her shoulder. It took her a moment to realize there were tears running down her cheeks.

She sat back in surprise, opening her eyes to look at the other two. Silena hugged her, while Piper took one of her hands in support.

She rubbed her eyes. “Sorry,” she said. “It’s just been a long day.”

Silena shushed her. “You don’t have to apologize for anything, Beth.”

She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths while gently being rocked back and forth in Silena’s arms. Piper rubbed her hand encouragingly. Her thoughts drifted back to Percy again.

“I don’t open up to people a lot,” she mumbled. “This has been really weird to me.”

Silena patted her head gently. “I know, darling, believe me,” she said in exasperation, but there was no bite to it. Annabeth continued as if she hadn’t spoken.

“I just thought I was doing the right thing. Everyone always has their own things to worry about, they don’t need mine too. After today though… I guess I’m not sure.

“Percy is so open about things, so free with his emotions and past and problems, but none of that bothered me at all. If anything, I respect him more now. Meanwhile, he seems way happier than I am.”

She opened her eyes to her friends encouraging smiles. “Am I wrong to think that way? Am I right? Does it even matter?”

Piper spoke up. “I think communication is important,” she said emphatically. “I know I feel better when I talk about things that bother me, and I worry more about my friends when they don’t. It feels like they're pushing me away.

Luke’s frown flashed in her mind.  _ ‘I don’t know what I was expecting.’ _

“Is that right?” Annabeth mumbled.

She nodded enthusiastically. Silena let her go, taking a step back.

“Beth,” she said gently, “What do you want to do? What would make you happy?”

Annabeth closed her eyes. She thought about all the things she’d done to create distance between herself and others, and about the boy who had managed to so quickly get around those walls.

_ Maybe… maybe those walls need doors put in,  _ she thought _. Maybe  _ he  _ could help me build them. _

“I guess…” She looked up at Silena’s expectant eyes. Annabeth sighed, amused and exasperated. 

“I think I want to change some company policies,” she said, smirking and rolling her eyes. Her stomach fluttered, but now that it was out there she was more sure of her words than ever.

She grinned at the two of them. “There, I said it. Are you happy now?”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAHAHA who's your favorite trash author that doesn't update when they're supposed to???
> 
> sorry sorry sorry, i know this is WAY overdue and i have no excuses. consider this a present? happy holidays, everyone! stay safe and all but still, enjoy yourself!

Silena squeaked in excitement, clapping her hands together like a child. Piper rolled her eyes, but smiled at Annabeth.

"I'm happy for you," she said, playfully pushing her shoulder. Annabeth laughed.

"Thanks guys," she said. "It means a lot."

Silena waved her hand dismissively. "Anytime, darling. Me and Piper will always be here for you."

"Piper and I," Annabeth corrected automatically. She shook her head. "Sorry, that was mean. You've been really nice lately and-"

"No, you're right," Piper interrupted. "Good grammar is important." Judging by the look on Silena's face, she disagreed, but she didn't seem really offended.

Silena clasped her hands together. "Okay, ladies, now that emotional fun-times are over, let's relax and watch what we came here for!"

"Actually, I'm pretty sure you came here to make me fess up about my love life," Annabeth muttered under her breath, though she lacked any real malice. She plopped down next to Silena and Piper on the sofa.

"Aww, Beth," Silena whined, "you ate all the ice cream."

Annabeth shot her a withering look. "I'm also pretty sure I saw both you and Piper with cartons in your hands and spoons in your mouths, but okay, sure."

Piper smirked. "Well, 'Lena, it's a good thing you buy loads and loads of ice cream for Annabeth all the time, huh?" She stood up, stretching her legs. "I'll get more anyways. I've been sitting so long, my feet are numb!"

Annabeth settled into her couch, Silena already talking over their mindless entertainment. She'd had enough seriousness for the day. For now, she was content to not feel anything heavy for a while.

OoOoOoOoO

Percy rushed into his room, slamming the door behind him. He'd practically ran home, blowing through the house with barely a, "Hello," to his mom before running straight to his room.

After his time in the elevator with Annabeth, the melody she'd inspired was stuck in his head, growing more and more defined all day. For the first time in a long time, he needed to make music.

He yanked his closet door open, throwing clothes and junk aside. Finally, he found his old friends, leaning against the corner collecting dust.

Almost reverently, he pulled out his old guitar, as well as a simple black notebook.

He pulled a pen out of his bedside table and threw the book open to one of the few blank pages left, right at the end of the book. He would have to get a new one soon, if he started writing music again. The thought almost scared him as much as it excited him.

So much was happening so quickly, it seemed, Percy felt like he could barely keep up.

He took a deep breath. _Focus. None of that matters now. All that matters, in this moment, is this._

The chord he strummed was very out of tune, and he winced. _Of course it would be out of tune, I haven't used this thing in forever._

After impatiently tuning the guitar, he strummed a few chords to be sure. Then he called his mom into the room.

He didn't look up when he heard the door open, nor when he heard the soft, excited gasp she made when she noticed what she was holding. He just started the melody in his head and let the words flow out of him.

Percy sang with everything he had, the tune just cascading out of his mouth. He barely realized what he was singing, caught up in the _music_ and the _sounds_ and the familiar sensation he hadn't realized he'd missed. And, all too soon, it trickled to a stop.

Hearing a sniff, Percy looked up, smiling. "Hey, Mom."

Percy's mother wiped her eyes. "Percy, that… that was beautiful."

He scratched the back of his neck, embarrassed. "You… you really think so?" He looked up, eyes wide and hopeful, and Sally was reminded of Percy back in high school - before everything went downhill.

"Oh, definitely," she assured him. "It was amazing."

"Ah…" Percy brought his hands down from his neck and started fiddling with his fingers. "Do you think you could… remind me what they were? I, um, don't exactly remember."

His mother opened her mouth and sang the lyrics as she remembered them. "I might never stop your sorrow, fix you up good as new~ but that don't mean I can't hold your hand in mine~ whew!" she laughed. "You definitely have that talent in this family!"

Percy typed it into his phone and pocketed the small device, turning to smile at his mother. "Thanks, Mom."

Sally strolled into the living room, carrying a laundry basket filled to the brim with clothes. "So," she said, setting down the basket and unloading the clothes into neat piles. "Who's the lucky girl?"

Percy flushed. "Um, I don't- there's not really someone, it's just…" he trailed, turning his phone over in his hands.

Sally laughed. "Percy, sweetheart, you have been living in my house since you were born and I know you better than that. Tell me about her."

His eyes remained fixated on the device in his hands. "Ah, well, there's not much to say- you know, just- she's nice and pretty and… well, successful. I don't think I really have a chance, Mom."

His mother stopped folding the laundry temporarily to touch his arm gently, her hand warm from the heat of the recently cleaned clothes. "You always have a chance. Just don't stop trying."

Percy bit his lip. He didn't want to argue, but he figured a girl like Annabeth would always be too good for a guy like him, and that she'd know it, too. Still, he didn't say anything. He knew it would hurt his mom's feelings.

Sally sighed at Percy's silence, and began folding laundry again. They sat like that for a while, as Sally began to hum what Percy knew was her favorite song - the one that reminded her of Dad. Percy absentmindedly picked up the tune on his guitar and began to play, filling the apartment with music.

For a while they just roamed the apartment like that; Sally cleaning or cooking dinner, with Percy helping as needed, all the while drifting back and forth from conversation to song. It was a natural back and forth; their talks led into the music, the music generated discussion, with Sally often picking up the backups to the songs she knew. She wasn't always on key, but it didn't matter. To anyone listening, Percy carried it on his own, but no one was listening. This was for them, and no one else, just like it used to be, and that was enough.

Laughter filled the apartment, along with the songs. Percy's voice was nearly hoarse by the time they sat down for dinner; he wasn't used to singing as much as he once did. Sally stares at him fondly.

"Do you think you're back?" she asked kindly. Percy paused mid chew.

"I don't know," he said, mouth still full. "I hope so."

She lightly smacked his hand. "Chew before speaking, dear. And I hope so too," she added softly. "It's been lonely ever since…"

Percy nodded. When he stopped playing music, in some ways it felt like their home had become a house. He knew they both missed those days, and he really hoped he could bring them back, if not for him, then for his mom.

He loved her a lot, and felt she deserved the world, which he knew he'd never be able to give. She had given up a great deal for him; losing out on his diploma to take care of her and the hospital bills? He could handle that.

"So," Sally started, "would you care to tell me about the person who inspired you to come back? I know you don't think you have a chance with her, and I don't know if you're right, but I'd like to know about the woman who captured my son's heart," she said fondly.

Percy smiled. "Sure thing, Mom. She's… her name's Annabeth. She has blonde hair, and these stormy grey eyes that are absolutely striking and… maybe a little deadly," he laughed, "I think her smile is the most beautiful thing in the world, too.

"She's also really kind, even though she hasn't had the best life. And she… doesn't take very good care of herself, but she has really great friends that I'm sure will always help her. She really cares about other people, too.

"I…" Percy blushed. "I really like her."

Sally sighed fondly. "I'm glad you found someone who makes you so happy."

OoOoOoOoO

Annabeth lay in bed, staring blankly up at her phone screen, scrolling through the seemingly endless emails from various clients and coworkers about the projects she was working on. She had sent Silena and Piper on their way just a few minutes ago, though she discreetly made an appointment for Percy and Piper to meet later this week.

 _I'll reply to them tomorrow,_ she decided, tossing her phone to the side. Right now, her mind was too distracted to even think about work.

Instead, she was thinking about the events of the day… the elevator… the talk… _Percy_.

The way he made those goofy little jokes that were somehow awful and hilarious, which he often laughed at harder than anyone else. She particularly enjoyed when he would double over, because when he'd come back up he was usually breathless and glowing.

A sharp _ding!_ broke her out of her reverie. _Oh gods. Did I just wax poetic about how great Percy is? Ugh, what is happening to me?_

She shook her head to clear her traitorous thoughts, clicking on the calendar notification.

_Attending: scheduled meeting with R. tomorrow_

Annabeth put the phone down in favor of the book she had bought at the mall a week ago. A distant thought nagged at the back of her mind when she stared at the cover.

Skimming through the book, Annabeth noted that most of Dare's early art seemed to be of the same boy on the cover. And yet, his face was never shown in any of them.

 _How odd,_ Annabeth mused. _But whoever he is, he must have been very special to her._

She read over the odd requests Dare had sent. Annabeth studied the possible locations for the studio, analyzing the cost and possible architecture of each and every one. This was a really big opportunity for her company, and she could not afford to mess it up.

So immersed in her work, she didn't notice as the minutes flew by. Her eyes scanned each page, storing every detail into a different compartment of her mind.

Finally looking up from the stacks of paper, her eyes widened when she realized how late - or early - it was.

"Oh, gods," she muttered. Reluctantly setting the paper on her bedside table, she pulled up the covers, craving a massage now more than ever. Casting one final look at the boy standing in the midst of a storm, Annabeth closed her eyes and drifted into the realm of Morpheus.

OoOoOoOoO

When Annabeth opened her eyes, she was standing in the middle of her childhood home. Blurred versions of Bobby and Matthew passed by, screaming as they always did. And when shadows crept out of the corners, chasing them, she realized.

They weren't playing.

They were _terrified._

The shadows coalesced, revealing her stepmother wearing a stern expression, pointing the finger of accusation at her. "You did this to us!"

_No._

Annabeth backed into a wall, the twins right beside her.

All three of them screamed in unison as _Helen_ stepped forward.

_Nonononono._

"How ironic," her father hissed appearing out of nowhere. "The one to cause all the problems is always the one to run away, leaving the rest of us behind to deal with your mess."

"I-" she started, but a whole opened up beneath her feet and she fell. And fell and fell and fell-

But a hand in the darkness reached out to her, and without a second thought, she grabbed it, letting it haul her up to what would possibly be safety.

It was Silena, grinning mischievously at her- no, Piper, laughing, _wait._ Luke, smiling softly down at her like he always did. "I'm sorry," he whispered, before vanishing.

A meadow of greens and pinks and yellows faded into view around her. She was standing in the center of a flowerfield, covered in poppies and peonies and - empty coffee cups?

Odd. She usually recycled.

"Hey, Wise Girl!" A boy with black hair and blurry features turned to - smile? Grimace? - at her. Bubbling happiness swept through her as tubs of ice cream began raining from the sky.

 _Silena! Piper!_ "Oh, hello again!"

Roses - roses? Red- no, pink, no, yellow, no _green_ flowers that fluttered. Green… like dollars? The oppressive faces of former Presidents glared up at her, like she was the reason they were currently arranged like origami roses.

The various bills suddenly tore free from their stems, coming together into some shape. Then they began to flap again and again, almost like…

Wings! birds! _Oh!_ Owls!

Annabeth watched, disheartened as they flew away.

"Don't be sad," the boy - now man - said. "Those who fly away will always come back." He patted her arm comfortingly, and everywhere he touched became speckled… with freckles!

Hmm.

A gust of wind blew past her, taking away the man she now realized was holding an orange sword. "No worries!" He called, waving. "I'll come back for you!"

Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed, turning all of the flowers brilliant shades of yellow.

It started raining, each raindrop a different shade of blue. Water ran down her face and, oh, dear, was she crying? Why? Oh… was it because Sword Man got swept away?

How strange.

She didn't even know him, and yet… why was she crying?

OoOoOoOoO

_Gods, oh gods, oh gods._

Annabeth cursed as she drove. Barely missing a silver, likely expensive car, she pulled into the parking lot. When she stepped inside the building, she noticed with relief Dare hadn't arrived yet.

"You're two minutes late!" Silena called out. Annabeth ignored her.

Quickly rummaging through her bag to make sure she hadn't forgotten any papers, Annabeth leaned against the desk, trying to look as though she hadn't just arrived and nearly missed their meeting.

As if on cue, a woman with brilliant red hair and light green eyes stepped inside. Freckles dotted her pale skin, the same shade as her fiery hair. A pale yellow sun was painted - possibly tattooed - on the back of her left hand.

Annabeth stood to greet her, reaching out her hand with a smile. Her new client broke into a genuine smile, striding confidently across the room and taking her hand.

"Ms. Dare, it's a pleasure to be working with you," Annabeth said.

She laughed. "Please, call me Rachel. And no formal business talk; we're the same age, so there's no reason for us to talk like old men, right?" she asked, winking.

Annabeth laughed, letting their hands drop. "Definitely, I have to do that enough already. So, let's get to know each other a bit better before we talk business," she said gesturing for Rachel to take a seat.

Rachel plopped down, totally at ease. Annabeth took her seat smiling.

This is what she had looked forward to most about working with Ms. Dare. She had heard she just didn't care for the bizarre policies of the business world, and Annabeth was a bit tired of having to put on a show all the time.

She smiled. _I think we're going to get along just fine._


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha i'm back ok that wasn't a hiatus or anything i'm just,,, extensively lazy. sorry. once this catches up with ffnet, though, you'll get the chapters as they come out. yeah.

"She's just so impressive, you know? Like, the moment I needed to start talking she just completely switched gears to accommodate my needs, despite having such a terrible day, and I just-"

Beckendorf cleared his throat. When Percy met his eyes, he was giving him _the look._

He frowned. "Hey man, you asked."

He chuckled, turning back to the light switch he was rewiring. "Not what I meant, man."

Percy grimaced. He popped open a nearby air freshener and replaced its cartridge, just for something to do. "I'm not saying it," he muttered.

"Admitting you have a problem is the first step," Beckendorf called over his shoulder dryly.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Okay, fine. I might have a crush," he muttered. "Happy?"

It was an understatement and they both knew it, but Percy was grateful Beckendorf didn't push him. He just hummed in acknowledgment and continued his work while Percy watched.

Officially, he was still being taught how to be a general handyman, but honestly he and Beckendorf were just hanging out on the job. Percy worked more hours than Beckendorf did, and there never seemed to be enough work for him to do, so when given the chance they usually worked together.

As Beckendorf finished tightening the screws to the light switch's faceplate, Percy asked, "So, you know all about my… romantic life, or lack of one I guess. What do you think?"

Straightening up, he answered, "I think it's a tough situation to be in. On the one hand, she seems more interested in you than you seem to think. On the other, she's your boss, so if you ask and you're wrong…" he trailed off.

Percy winced. "Yeah, you see the problem. Plus the no dating thing, and she's way too good for me anyway."

Beckendorf shook his head. "You're selling yourself short, Perce. But you're right, the no dating rule is a problem. My advice? Don't give up on it, but also don't ask her out unless you are _absolutely_ sure. I'd hate to lose my workplace bromance to some girl," he said matter of factly.

Percy let out a surprised laugh. Beckendorf wasn't one for cracking jokes, so whenever he did it was something Percy treasured. "Thanks man, I'll keep that in mind."

Just then, Beckendorf received a call on his radio to come fix the printer on the third floor, so he packed up his things and they walked away together.

"I guarantee the paper is just jammed. It's not even that hard a fix, it'll take two seconds," Beckendorf complained.

Percy wasn't listening however. He was deep in thought.

"Hey, Beckendorf?" he asked.

"Hmm?"

"I remember you said you knew what having a crush at the workplace was like. Has there been any update with that, or…?"

Beckendorf accidentally kicked the wall as they turned a corner. "I, uh, I mean," he sputtered out. Percy however, had stopped listening the moment they rounded the corner, because standing just a dozen feet away was a girl he knew well. A girl with curly red hair, green eyes and a sun painted on her hand.

The girl who'd long ago broken his heart.

One thousand thoughts ran through Percy's mind - _is that her? Oh gods. She looks older. Of course she does! It's been years. I wonder how she's been? What is she doing here? Does she know I'm here?_

Rachel did a double take when she saw him, but recovered quickly and waved. "Oh, hey, Percy, didn't expect to see you here! And, ah, who's this?" She stepped up to look at Beckendorf.

_Well, she does now. She's not acting any different than she did 7 years ago. That's… it's nice to know some things never change._

"Beckendorf. I work maintenance," he said simply.

Percy was barely aware of his surroundings as they exchanged pleasantries, but he could tell Beckendorf had picked up on his tension. He was mid-freak out though, so he didn't say anything.

 _Okay, think. She's an artist now._ _What kind of business would she have with an architecture company? Maybe she's friends with someone here. But- wait, I haven't seen her around before. Then again, I haven't been here long either. Perhaps she was on vacation and only came back?_

_But who would she be friends with? If she was friends with someone here, I at least would have heard her name somewhere…_

His head throbbed. _Wait,_ have _I heard her name somewhere? Dare…_

Percy's thought train abruptly came to a stop when Beckendorf tapped him on his shoulder. _Who's that?_ He mouthed, nodding to Rachel.

Percy mouthed back. _Ex._

Beckendorf's eyes widened, as he looked back and forth between them. Percy had gotten to know Beckendorf pretty well, and the look he wore said it all. _That's rough, buddy._

The radio crackled again, asking what was taking so long. Beckendorf apologized, and with one last worried look to Percy, headed downstairs, mumbling some unflattering things about impatient coworkers.

Now alone, Percy found himself face to face with his former girlfriend.

This was someone he'd once planned a future with. Someone who left him behind to pursue a future without him. Someone who was struggling to meet his eyes now, just like he struggled to meet hers.

After a moment, she cleared her throat.

"So, Percy, how have you been?" Rachel asked politely, as if it hadn't been 7 years since they last talked and she told him her career was more important than their relationship.

Awkwardly, Percy replied, "I-I'm fine. Uhm, what about you?"

"I'm glad to hear you've been doing well, Percy."

The more she smiled at him, the more he was painfully reminded of the girl from years ago. When she smiled at him, it brought feelings and memories to his mind he thought he'd let go of a long time ago, like her first birthday after they'd started dating.

" _Percy, guess what?" Rachel skipped up to him, almost floating above the ground. Seeing that, he smiled fondly at her._

_He threw his arms into the air enthusiastically."Hey, there's the Birthday Girl! Happy Birth-"_

_She shut him up with a kiss, which he didn't mind in the slightest. When she pulled back, she was scowling at him._

" _Don't you dare start singing again. This time it was a kiss, next time it'll be a kick."_

_He held his hands up in surrender, laughing. "Okay, okay, message received! So, what's up?"_

_She perked up, former enthusiasm remembered suddenly, and unzipped her backpack, pulling out something he couldn't believe she'd fit in there. It was a deep mahogany box, with ornate, pale golden embellishments and paint tubes artfully arranged to form a rainbow circle on top._

" _It's what my dad got me for my birthday!" She pulled out small drawers on the sides, containing an assortment of pencils and markers, some of which were noticeably used._

_Percy smiled externally, but on the inside he felt a bit sick. They both knew his money was tight, whereas her dad was a millionaire, and while she told him not to worry about gifts, he had still got her something. It just wasn't anywhere near that nice._

" _Wow, Rach, I didn't even expect him to remember! How much did this_ cost _?" he blurted out before he could stop himself._

_Rachel waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, not much. Anyways, do you wanna come over today and help me break this in?"_

" _Looks like it's already plenty used," he laughed, "but actually, I was thinking we could try painting at the park tonight, if you're down. It might be nice to paint out in nature, ya know?"_

_He said it casually in an effort to hide what he had planned. He figured he didn't need to worry though, since she probably just assumed he was only offering it to get her out of her house. Admittedly, that was a big part of it, but he had something a bit more special than that planned out._

_He could tell from the wide eyed look on her face that she liked the idea. "That sounds great, Perce!"_

_He laughed. "Awesome. Walk there together after school?" he asked._

_She nodded. Impulsively, she hugged him, pulling him close. "Thanks, Percy. For getting it. For getting_ me _."_

_He nodded, surprised. "Of course. What else am I good for?"_

_She buried her head in his neck. "Lots of things, Percy. Someday you'll see. Even if it takes all the paint and canvas in the world, I'll paint you a picture of all the good you are."_

_Percy blushed, taken aback. "Hey now, this is your birthday, I'm the only one who's allowed to be all gross and sweet."_

_She laughed, pulling back to look at him with green, sparkling eyes. "Well, I'll be looking forward to it, Percy."_

"Percy," Rachel said, startling him out of his reverie. "Percy?"

"Oh! Sorry, I was just… thinking about something. Um, could you repeat that?"

Rachel tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I was just wondering if you wanted to meet up tomorrow over dinner to… discuss some things. It's been a long time since I've seen you, and I want to know how you've been!"

"Ah," he paused, "sure. I'll-I'll check my schedule and see if I'm free… when?"

"Does… 5:00 work for you?"

OoOoOoOoO

 _That went well_ , Annabeth thought, relieved. _Rachel seems like a perfectly lovely person and she's… very different from what I expected._

After stacking all the papers neatly on her desk, she walked down to see Rachel out. Calling ahead of her, she said, "Rachel, I was thinking, maybe next time-"

Standing in front of Rachel was a very familiar face she had _absolutely not_ agonized over the night before. She was too far away to hear what they were saying, but Percy was scratching the back of his neck, which Annabeth knew was a telltale sign of nervousness.

 _I wonder what they're talking about_ , she mused. "Hey, Percy, Rachel."

They both turned around at the same time, one very quickly and the other calmly. Annabeth couldn't have been sure, but for a second, she saw the tips of Percy's ears start to turn red.

Rachel's eyes flitted back and forth between the two.

Annabeth noted Percy was considerably nervous - more nervous than even in the elevator. An inkling tugged at the back of her mind, but she brushed it away. _I'll think about it later._

"Hi, Annabeth!" Rachel said brightly. "I was just talking to Percy here. But, ah, since all of our business is finished, I'll leave you two alone now. See you tomorrow~"

Her shoulders aching, Annabeth waved goodbye to Rachel.

"Um, Annabeth," Percy said **,** "how do you know Rachel? I don't think she works here, otherwise I would've seen her or at least heard her name around somewhere."

Annabeth clapped her hands together. "Oh, yes! Um, we are designing an art studio for her. This is a really great opportunity since she's a pretty popular artist now. Why, do you know her or something?"

Percy looked at the wall behind her. "Uh, I was just wondering, since I hadn't seen her around before. Um, did you want to talk to me about something?"

"Oh, right, Percy," Annabeth said a little nervously. She stared at the dark coffee she held in her hands, trying to steel her nerves. _You're a big girl, you can do this._

"Remember what we talked about yesterday?" She asked. When he was silent after a moment, she continued. "I mean, we talked about a lot of things, but specifically the massage thing. The thing where you give me massages and I pay you, because that's how a job works and you're worth every cent."

She grimaced. _This is going well,_ she thought sarcastically. "Anyway, I was wondering if you'd like to do our first session tomorrow afternoon, around 5:30 at my place, if that works? My shoulders and back have been killing me all day."

 _Though admittedly they're always killing me,_ she thought to herself, _it's just now I know how much better life can feel, all thanks to you. A fact I will keep to myself, for the time being._

He blinked a couple times before speaking. "Oh! I, um, didn't think you were serious. But sure! I'll check my schedule and see if I'm free then."

Annabeth frowned as he scratched the back of his neck. _Is he nervous? Am_ I _making him nervous? What did I do? Does he not want to do it? Was this a mistake?_

"Just call me and let me know, yeah?" She said lightly, trying not to put any pressure on him, or clue him in to her sudden state of panic. Almost as an afterthought, she added, "or text me. Whatever works for you."

OoOoOoOoO

Percy laid in bed, staring blankly up at the ceiling, covered with sticky glow-in-the-dark stars. They weren't there because _he_ wanted them, he remembered. They were there because one day, Rachel had come in while he wasn't home and decided to… redecorate.

Even after their breakup, he never had the heart to take them down.

His mind drifted back to his conversation with Rachel earlier that day. ' _Tomorrow at five'_. _She wants to meet up… for what, exactly?_

Different possibilities raced through his mind, but Percy discarded each and every one of them. _If I go, I could just find out._

 _But… Annabeth. The massage. The massage that she was actually serious about, and that she wants me to come over to her house for. Oh_ man, _I'm screwed._

Percy groaned, turning over and burying his face in a pillow. He knew it was stupid, but in the moment he'd been so out of it he didn't think to just say, ' _Could we do another time?'_

_Ugh, I'm an idiot! I mean, the choice is obvious, right? Rachel was the past. But… there are so many things I want to ask her. Was her career worth it? Does she ever regret it? ...Does she want to apologize?_

He sighed loudly to himself. "I think," he said to no one in particular, "I know who needs to take priority tomorrow."


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we are! nearly!! caught up with ffnet!!! to be honest, though, wriitng on ffnet is slowing down so once it's at the same rate, updates are.. well they're not going to be fast. um. enjoy!

Percy stood across the street from CHB wringing his hands nervously. He felt queasy, but he'd already committed to this now.

He had texted Annabeth that morning saying he'd need to reschedule, and asked Rachel where she'd like to meet up. Annabeth was very understanding, and thankfully Rachel's number hadn't changed, otherwise he wouldn't have known where to meet her. They both had chosen to ignore the long list of one-sided texts before today's chat.

Percy's foot tapped impatiently as he waited for the crosswalk to let him walk. _Of course, she wanted to meet at the one place outside of work I've spent a lot of time with Annabeth._ He shook his head. _Hopefully Hazel and Frank aren't working today._

Finally, the light changed, and Percy rushed across to the other side of the street. With each step he felt a bit more sick, but he pressed on. He wasn't sure what exactly he was in for, but he needed answers. He set his jaw. He deserved answers.

The door chimed as he pushed it open in his rush, and a handful of people shot him a startled look. While the cafe wasn't particularly crowded, he didn't see Rachel immediately. However, standing just behind the register was Hazel, whose eyes flashed with recognition when she saw him.

He approached the counter. "Uh, hey, Hazel. I'm here to meet up with someone. Rachel. Redhead, green eyes," he blurted out before she could say anything. She looked confused, but led him to where Rachel was sitting.

Her face was buried in a sketchbook when they walked up, various colored pencils strewn across the table. Percy coughed.

"Percy!" Rachel said, smiling as she looked up. "I wasn't sure whether or not you would actually show up. I'm glad you did."

She gestured for him to sit down. As he did, he watched Hazel's eyes flashing quickly back and forth between them, unsure of what to make of the situation. Finally, she settled on Percy, her expression hard to read.

"Is there anything I can get for you, _Percival?"_ Her tone was polite, but Percy flinched. She was judging him and he knew it. _She must have assumed there's something between me and Annabeth, that I'm going behind her back here… oh, Hazel, if only you knew it's not that simple._

"Um, a hot chocolate would be nice," he said meekly, not meeting her eyes.

Rachel smiled at Hazel, money already in hand. "Keep the change." She raised her hand when Percy tried to object. "I'm the one who asked you to meet up, so it's my treat. Really, it's no big deal."

Percy might've argued more, but he knew Rachel wouldn't take no for an answer and the longer they argued the more Hazel would misunderstand, so he just looked down and mumbled a quick thanks. Hazel left quietly, leaving a brief, awkward silence in her wake.

"So," Percy began, "what did you want to talk about?"

Rachel studied him, her eyes hard to read. At one time Percy had thought he was pretty good at reading her, but clearly he'd been dead wrong. Sometimes he wondered how much he'd ever really understood about Rachel.

She spoke, breaking his reverie. "How is Sally doing?"

Percy frowned slightly. He hadn't come here to make small talk, but he figured it would be better to ease into it. "She's doing good."

"Is she still in a lot of pain?"

Percy shrugged. "We get by."

Rachel's expression softened. "I always loved your mom. You're very lucky. She was the family I wished I'd had."

Percy stiffened, but if she noticed she didn't react. _You could have had._ "I know."

Rachel pursed her lips. As she began to speak again, Hazel came back with Percy's drink. Rachel made a space for it as Percy took it in his hands, still not making eye contact. He couldn't help but notice the name scribbled on the side of the cup.

 _Zeus._ He grimaced. _I need to clear this up with Hazel before I leave. She's completely misunderstood things. Not that I blame her, I guess._

"Sorry," he mumbled involuntarily. Rachel gave him a quizzical look, but he ignored her and looked into Hazel's eyes, guarded and steely.

He wanted to tell her it wasn't what she thought, but the words just wouldn't come. His face seemed to do the trick however, since she dropped some of the anger, but she was still apprehensive as she walked away. Percy sighed in relief. _Better than nothing, I guess._

Rachel watched Hazel walk away. "What was that about?" She asked.

Percy ran his hand through his hair, leaning back to look at the ceiling. "Just a misunderstanding." Before she could ask, he continued. "Why are we here, Rachel? I'm sure you didn't want to just catch up." _And that's definitely not what I'm here for._

Rachel twirled a pencil fluidly back and forth between her fingers, her expression almost pained. "I… I wanted to apologize, Percy. I think you deserve that."

Percy laughed without humor. "It didn't work out, Rachel. Priorities shifted. It happens."

She winced. "Yes, well… it's a little more complicated than that, which is what I wanted to explain."

Percy leaned forward, eyes locked on Rachel's. She seemed hesitant, but _this_ was what he was here for. She owed him an explanation, and she knew it.

Rachel's phone buzzed. She broke eye contact to check it, and almost seemed relieved. "I'm sorry, I need to take this, but I'll be right back." With that, she got up and walked to the women's bathroom, phone in hand.

Percy sat back, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths. There were so many things he wanted to say to Rachel; part of him wanted to yell, a bit of him wanted to cry, but some small, sad piece of him wanted her to take him back.

He missed the good old days, but he knew that wasn't an option for either of them now. Nothing had changed; he was still a loser with no education, working a dead end job, whereas she was a successful artist from a wealthy family. She had no more reason to want him now than she did before. The difference was he now had plenty of reasons to want to stay away from her.

But still, he missed her. Even before they dated, they were close. She was one of his best friends for years. To lose that entire relationship so suddenly and completely left a pretty big hole in his life for a while.

He remembered the first time he'd met Rachel's dad. When they went to Rachel's house, it was normally empty, save some cleaning people or the cook. That day was different, however.

" _Rachel," said a man with judgemental, dark green eyes and red hair similar to Rachel's, "who is this?"_

_Based on his tone and expression, he could have just as easily been talking about a pile of trash as a human being, and Percy wondered how this man could think so little of someone he didn't know._

_Percy's friend snapped to attention, standing up and tilting her head back to look at the man he figured to be her father in the eye. "Father," she replied coolly, "this is Percy. He is my… friend. I didn't realize you'd come home yet from your business trip."_

Ah… right _. Percy remembered the few times Rachel had spoken of her dad. None of the things she'd said were… pleasant, to say the least. Percy clenched his fist when Mr. Dare looked down at him with disdain - almost the same way he'd looked at his daughter._

_He folded his arms behind his back as he addressed her directly. "Is there anything I should be aware of?" he asked._

" _No, father. All of my grades are good, and there's been no more trouble in Mrs. Dodds's class."_

_The man nodded. "Good. I'm glad you've learned from our previous discussions about the importance of good behavior." He glanced briefly at Percy, then resumed ignoring him._

" _As such, you get your end of the deal, as long as you continue as you should. Do as you wish." And with that, he turned away, dismissing them both._

_Before he could stop himself, Percy blurted out, "Dude, don't you care about your daughter at all?! The first thing you say to her when you get home is, 'Who's this?' No, 'How was your day,' or 'I missed you'? Honestly, you can't even pretend to be interested?!"_

" _Percy." Rachel murmured, sticking her hand out to stop him from continuing. He was close to yelling, however, when he saw that she was barely holding back too, he managed to catch himself._

 _He raised one eyebrow, frowning at Percy in a way that made him_ feel _the disdain this man held for him. Then he turned his belittling gaze on Rachel._

" _Rachel, why is he here?" The man asked pointedly._

" _Because I invited him." Rachel snapped shortly, eyes burning with defiance and anger_. " _C'mon, Percy, let's go upstairs and do something." Without another word, she whirled around and stormed off to her room, leaving Percy alone with her father._

 _Mr. Dare observed Percy for a heartbeat before stepping in and telling him, "I think it would be most advisable for you to stop spending time with my daughter. She doesn't need lowlifes like_ you _holding her back."_

_Before Percy could lay into him again, Mr. Dare folded his arms behind back. He gave a slight bow of his head, but a way that was more demeaning than anything else. Speaking quietly, he said, "I am a generous man, however. For your cooperation, I could see to it you were… fairly compensated."_

_Percy barked out a laugh. "So, since when did it matter to you who Rachel hung out with? Before, you didn't seem to care about getting involved with her in general - what's up with the sudden change? Don't start pretending to care now, Mr. Dare," his voice dropped, "when you should have started caring years ago."_

_On that note, Percy stalked off to follow Rachel. He barely made out Mr. Dare's vague threats about regretting it, but Percy didn't care. Rachel was important to him and she liked having him around, so he was staying, whether Mr. Dare liked him or not._

Percy slumped in his chair, throwing his head back and groaning loudly. Things had been so much simpler then. He and Rachel had always had each other's backs, and even with all the hurt she'd left behind, he did miss her.

Things were different now, though, and he couldn't keep living in the past. He wasn't wanted now, and he couldn't help but wonder if part of her decision was because her dad finally did get to her.

Had she really sunk to that low? Was she like him after all?

Percy shook his head, even if he was only thinking to himself. Rachel just wasn't that way, and he doubted her dad had broken through in that way. But why meet now?

He desperately wanted to know, wanted some form of real closure, because though she'd made herself _very_ clear before, he couldn't find it in him to let go back then.

Now, however… now was different. He had distance; years of it. He had a new perspective. And, as he thought of the grey eyes he'd come to know, he had someone new to occupy his heart.

Even if it was a one-sided attraction and Percy was no more worth Annabeth's time than Rachel's, it meant he could keep Rachel out of his head. That, and Annabeth actually cared about him, which definitely put him above Rachel in his mind.

Only now did it occur to him that despite all this, he'd made Rachel the priority today, not Annabeth.

He planted his elbows on the table and buried his head in his hands. _Ugh, what an idiot! You keep saying you've moved on, but what do your actions say about you, huh? You had a great chance to spend time with Annabeth, and you chose to see your ex instead?! And now you've missed your chance, it's too late!_

He took a deep breath, gripping his hair tightly in his fists. He collected himself as he continued his breathing exercises.

_Well, maybe, maybe not. I could text her, see if she's available for later today, and then rush through this mess with Rachel… but I don't think this is a conversation that can be rushed, and the longer we take, the later it'll get. But I'm already here, and we do need to have this conversation…_

Percy's mind pinballed back and forth between whether or not to go to Annabeth's house after he talked with Rachel, right up until Hazel propped her face up with her hands. "Percy," she said curiously, "who's she?"

"Rachel. I already told you that." Percy grumbled.

"That's not what I meant, and you know it. Who is she?"

Percy looked away from her gaze. "A… an old friend, I guess you could say."

Hazel stared quietly at him for a few seconds. "And where's Annabeth?"

"...I don't know." He mumbled. "Probably at home." _Alone_ , his mind added, _because I decided I would meet Rachel instead._ Percy mentally momentarily wondered what Annabeth was doing, if her shoulders still hurt, if- he shook his head, clearing his thoughts.

"You should talk to her, you know." Hazel told him, her eyes looking seriously into his.

"But what is there to even talk about?"

Hazel gave him a _look_. He stared back blankly. She looked upward and sighed, as if to say, _what am I going to do with this boy?_

"Just go talk to the girl, Percy. Whatever this is, between you and your, 'old friend,' can wait," she said, using air quotes and a look that told Percy she knew there was more to it than that.

When he hesitated, she gave him a shove.

"I'm serious. You and Annabeth need to talk, figure things out, and the sooner the better."

Percy blinked. "You know it's not like- er, what do we need to figure out?"

Hazel threw her hands up in frustration. "Ugh, you're both hopeless," she muttered to herself. "Just go, Percy, and don't come back until you've seen her!"

"Yeah," he sighed, "maybe I should."

She gave him a satisfied nod, stood up, and smiled at him as if nothing had happened, and walked away, presumably to serve another table.

Percy slumped back in his seat, thinking about what Hazel had said. _Does she think something's going on between Annabeth and I? But why? I think she's noticed I like her but… I'm pretty sure it's just one-sided._

Groaning, he put his head in his hands again. _I'm going to go see her_ , he decided. _I'm not sure what Hazel wants me to say to her, but I should talk to her. I'll tell Rachel first, though, and maybe we can talk another time._

Rachel came back to the table at that exact moment and Percy took a deep breath. "Rachel," he said, "I'm sorry, but something just came up and I need to leave." Trying to look as apologetic as possible, Percy pushed his chair back and stood up.

"Hmm." Rachel stared at him for a moment, her face unreadable. Then the tension dropped from her shoulders and she smiled. "That's fine! Just let me know whenever you're available, yeah?"

"Right, right," Percy mumbled before rushing out of the door. "See you around!"

Rachel tilted her chair back slightly, exhaling. She put two fingers to her wrist and counted to ten. Taking a deep breath again, she called out, "Check, please!"

Percy clambered onto the bus, finding an empty seat far away from everybody else and sitting down.

On the way there, Percy's mind raced with all the ways this could go wrong - and all the ways it could go right. _I'll apologize for coming without warning first_ , he decided. _And… maybe see if she's still up for that massage._

When the bus stopped, Percy climbed out and walked the rest of the way, giving himself a little more time to turn back. He didn't.

 _This is probably a bad idea_ , he allowed himself to think for a moment before he rang the doorbell. In the window, he caught a flash of blonde hair before the door swung open.

"Percy?!" Annabeth yelped, dropping a carton of cookie dough ice cream. "What are you doing here?"

She had her hair down, no makeup on and was wearing an oversized grey hoodie with matching sweats. Percy gulped, his mouth suddenly dry. She was still very cute, just in a completely different way from the prim and proper business Annabeth he was used to seeing. She also looked somewhere between shocked and mortified.

"Ahem," he cleared his throat, looking away. "Sorry, I guess I should've called in advance."

"Yeah, you should've!" she snapped, though she sounded more embarrassed than angry. He raised his hands in surrender.

"I'm sorry, it's just the other thing I had to do sort of… didn't work out the way I thought it would at the last minute, so I just thought I'd come over to see if you were still interested in, uh, what we talked about before, but I didn't mean to interrupt anything. I can go, I'm sorry," he took a small step back, face flushed with guilt.

"No, don't!" she said, reaching out to him before she could catch herself. She covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide, as if she was just as surprised at her outburst as he was.

"I mean," she said, mouth still covered. After a deep breath, she reached down and picked up the ice cream she'd dropped before. "You came all this way. You shouldn't leave just yet. Besides, I can't finish all this alone," she said, waving the carton back and forth.

"So… come on in, I guess." She invitingly swung the door wide, waiting for him to come inside. Moments later, Percy had crossed the threshold into Annabeth's home and, he hoped, a fresh start in his life.


End file.
